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(Alliance News) - Kakuzi PLC warned on Thursday that it expects profit for 2021 to be "at least" 25% lower than 2020.
The plantation operator in Kenya reiterated its projections given in its annual results, noting that Hass avocados are prone to a year of low production after a year of high production. Thus production was down 18% in 2021 compared to 2020.
It also attributes the lower earnings to reduced prices in European markets, caused by an oversupply of fruit from Peru and Colombia during the same period Kakuzi's fruit was on sale.
Kakuzi's other crops have performed as expected, and its macadamia business is 'increasingly strong'.
Continuing a strategy of product diversification to mitigate global market volatility and avoid overreliance on any one product is critical, the company said.
The Kenyan company's share price was untraded on Thursday, last quoted at 92.50 pence each.
By Elizabeth Winter; elizabethwinter@alliancenews.com
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