FIF.L Regulatory News (FIF)

Finsbury Food Group Plc

Finsbury Food Group Plc (AIM: FIF), a leading UK speciality bakery manufacturer of cake, bread and morning goods for both the retail and foodservice channels, is today providing an update on trading for the first four months of the new financial year.

The Board is pleased to report that, following the positive performance reported at the Group's preliminary results, strong trading has continued into the new financial year. Total Group sales revenues grew to £102m during the first four months, an increase of 78.1% on prior year, which includes organic growth of £5.8m, an increase of 10.1% over prior year. The UK Bakery division grew by 8.7% and the Overseas division, the Group's 50% owned European business, grew by 19.4%.

In October 2015 the Group celebrated the first anniversary of the Fletchers acquisition, which is now fully integrated and performing strongly. Johnstone's was acquired in June, just before the start of the current financial year, and is also integrating well.

The Group continues investing in the business which includes an increased focus on capital expenditure enabling the Directors' to maximise sales, efficiency and productivity opportunities across all businesses.

Whilst consumer confidence has improved, the economic and trading outlook remains uncertain and we anticipate that the Fletchers and Johnstone's acquisitions will drive the majority of the Group's growth in this financial year. The Board believes our larger, more diversified speciality bakery group is a strong multi-channel business, well equipped to deliver growth and improved shareholder value over the coming years.

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Notes to Editors:

§ Finsbury Food Group Plc (AIM: FIF) is a leading UK manufacturer of cake and bread bakery goods, supplying a broad range of blue chip customers within both the Grocery retail and 'out of home eating' foodservice sectors including major multiples and leading foodservice providers.

§ Following the acquisition of the Fletchers Group of bakeries, the Company is one of the largest speciality bakery groups in the UK with annualised sales in 2015 approaching £300 million.

§ The Company's bakery product range is comprehensive and includes:

- Large premium and celebration cakes.

- Small snacking cake formats such as cake slices and bites.

- Artisan, healthy lifestyle and organic breads through to rolls, muffins (sweet and savoury) and morning pastries, all of which are available both fresh and frozen dependent on customer channel requirements.

§ The Company is now the second largest manufacturer of ambient packaged cake (excluding In Store Bakery) in the UK, a market valued at £948 million (Source Symphony IRI 52 w/e 20 June 2015). The annual bread and morning goods market has a value in excess of £3.5 billion (source Kantar Worldpanel). The UK foodservice bakery sector is worth approximately £900 million per annum, 70% of which is in morning goods.

§ The Company comprises a UK Bakery division and an Overseas division:

- UK Bakery has manufacturing sites in Cardiff, Hamilton, East Kilbride, Salisbury, Sheffield, London and Manchester.

- Overseas division comprises the Company's 50% owned subsidiary, Lightbody Stretz Ltd, which supplies and distributes the Group's UK manufactured products and third party products, primarily to Europe.