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(Alliance News) - Ukrproduct Group Ltd on Friday reported a healthy rise in revenue for 2020 as the company weathered a contracting Ukrainian economy and a number of lockdowns during the year.
Shares in the producer & distributor of dairy products were trading 6.7% higher at 5.74 pence each on Friday morning in London.
Despite the disruption caused by the pandemic, revenue grew 11% to GBP55.5m for the year ended December 31. Growth was attributed to strong sales of spreads and processed cheese, increasing 133% and 80% respectively.
However the Kiev, Ukraine-based business swung to a pretax loss of GBP1.2 million, from a GBP2.0 million profit the year before. The decline was mainly driven by negative foreign exchange differences of GBP1.5 million, the group said.
"The dairy industry withstood the blow of the pandemic and a number of lockdowns in 2020, largely due to the products being considered necessities by the consumer," the company reported.
Ukrproduct added that it had managed to "steer through this volatile environment, maintaining its performance without interruptions and adapting to the changing market requirements".
Looking ahead, the company pointed to further sales increases of processed cheese and spreads as drivers of future growth. It plans to improve margins of products such as packaged butter by expanding into the premium market.
By Will Paige; willpaige@alliancenews.com
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