Dale Farm shows increase in profits

Group operating profit is up from £9.8m to £12.1m, profit before tax increased from £7.9m to £10.1m, with an associated EBITDA of £18.1m. Overall group turnover grew by a record increase of 24% to £481m.

Commenting on the results, which reflect a third year of consistent growth for the business, Dale Farm Group Chief Executive Nick Whelan said: “Our financial performance is measured by our ability to best support our farmer owners and as such our 2017/18 accounts are hugely positive. Our consistent level of growth and profitability is the result of ongoing reinvestment, combined with teamwork and an ambitious strategy that has strengthened partnerships with major customers across the UK, Ireland and beyond.”

He continued: “Dale Farm’s focus remains steadfast. We are committed to support sustainable farming by paying our members the best possible milk price at all times.”

“I am delighted to be able to report that Dale Farm has moved to the top of the 12-month rolling milk price league in Northern Ireland and, as of this month, is paying the leading milk price on the island of Ireland.”

Having invested £19m into its facilities and operations over the last three years, Dale Farm this year reported a 14.4% group return on capital employed, a figure Nick Whelan highlights as extremely significant: “A vital ingredient in our success is the strength of our people, so we invest heavily into developing talent that will help us on our growth trajectory. We also continually assess and reinvest into every step of the production process to increase our operating efficiencies and in doing so, have achieved a return on capital well above the industry average,” he said.

“This lean model allows us to focus on the sustainability not just of Dale Farm’s business, but also the businesses of our growing network of dairy farmers who provide us with world-class milk.

“Our cooperative ethos is underpinned by a long-term vision to support dairy farming across Northern Ireland and Great Britain and that will remain the driving force behind our strategy going forward. In essence, success for Dale Farm means success for every dairy farmer within our membership.”

The announcement, regarding the annual results, was made one week after Dale Farm signed a major supply contract with retailer Lidl, which will see its cheddar cheese being sold in 8,000 stores across 22 countries.

Meanwhile, The boards of LacPatrick Dairies and Lakeland Dairies have agreed to enter into exclusive discussions regarding an amalgamation of the two Societies.

Any agreement reached, will be subject to shareholder approval and the relevant regulatory clearance.

LacPatrick Dairies was formed in 2015 following the mergers of Town of Monaghan Co-op and Ballyrashane Co-op. LacPatrick collects and processes 600m litres of milk across Ulster from 1,000 farmer suppliers. A range of high-quality dairy products are exported to all continents.

Lakeland Dairies is a farmer owned dairy processing co-operative with operations across 15 counties on a cross border basis. Lakeland collects and processes over 1.2bn litres of locally produced milk each year into a wide range of value-added dairy foodservice and food ingredient products which it exports worldwide.