(An item published on March 16 misstated the 2014 net loss in the second paragraph. The correct version follows.)
LONDON (Alliance News) - PureCircle Ltd Monday reported higher operating profits for 2014, as its stevia sweetner was incorporated into Coca-Cola, Pepsi and other carbonated drink products, and started to be adopted in other products like ketchups, driving revenue up by 24%.
The maker of high-purity stevia reported a net loss of USD899,000 for 2014, compared with a USD1.9 million loss a year earlier, while its closely-watched earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation rose to USD6.4 million, from USD5.2 million, the same order of magnitude as the revenue increase to USD43.2 million from USD34.9 million.
"High profile Cola roll-outs led by Coca-Cola Life, Pepsi Next and Pepsi True into major markets like the USA, Mexico, UK, France, Japan and other markets and reformulations across a range of leading carbonated Lemon Lime, Orange and other brands indicate clearly that stevia is now seen as a mainstream sweetener of choice in the Carbonated Soft Drink category. The period has also seen a wide range of stevia sweetened product launches from major retailers across Europe and America and iconic brand adoption in categories as diverse as Ketchups, Yogurts and Confectionery," it said in a statement.
The company said it has started expanded its production capacity to meet the growth in demand and expects this to come online in 2017, although it did warn that demand may be lumpy in the short term.
"With accelerating roll-outs of food and beverage products using PureCircle's stevia solutions, particularly in the important Carbonated Soft Drink category, the Company is confident of large long term sales growth and with it improvements in profitability. However, until market consumption smooths out, that growth will come with a lumpy sales profile and therefore some volatility: this adds some complexity to our ability to provide guidance in the short term," it said.
By Steve McGrath; stevemcgrath@alliancenews.com; @stevemcgrath1
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