Premier on track to make £113m cost savings

PREMIER FOODS has reported a 2 per cent uplift in Irish sales for the first four months of the year, helped by strong growth in Quorn, the meat substitute.

The UK's second-largest bread baker, Premier said that group profit was meeting forecasts on increased bread prices and demand for a new loaf made under the Hovis brand.

Premier's brands in the Republic include Campbells, Oxo and McDonnells. Last year Premier agreed to sell Erin, its largest retail brand in the Republic, to facilitate the purchase of fellow food group RHM.

In its statement yesterday the firm said that strong Quorn sales had helped to offset lower Irish sales of branded goods.

Premier said that it remained on track to deliver £113 million of cost savings following the acquisition of RHM and Campbells.

In Ireland RHM's principal brands are Sharwoods, Paxo, Saxa, Bisto and McDougalls.

Premier said that group sales rose by 6.3 per cent over the first 17 weeks of the year and that price increases were meeting the costs associated with commodity price inflation.

The forecast applied to operating profit from continuing activities. The group raised bread prices in September and October to recoup higher expenses for wheat, the cost of which has jumped by about 75 per cent in a year.

Following the acquisition of RHM in 2007 Premier gets about a quarter of its sales from bread. Cost inflation this year is in line with the managers' forecast, according to Premier.

The company said that it would "closely monitor energy and oil-related costs". - (Additional reporting: Bloomberg)