Forget about the impact of the abolition of EU storage aid on Greencore's earnings. It may indeed affect earnings in the short term, but what is far more important for Greencore shareholders to know is how the company is bedding down the Hazlewood acquisition.

Greencore reports interim figures next week and the market will be expecting an update from its chief executive, David Dilger, on how he is faring with plans to sell more than €150 million (£118 million) worth of Hazlewood's non-core businesses. Getting rid of the loss-making parts of Hazlewood is key to the success of this acquisition, which has cost Greencore more than €580 million when assumed debt is taken into account.

To date, all we have heard about the rationalisation programme is closing down Hazlewood's head office in Derby, selling the ready-meals business in Wrexham for £5.3 million sterling (€8.8 million) and offloading the lossmaking FH Lee paper business for a nominal £1. A lot more needs to be taken out of Hazlewood and shareholders, including Dermot Desmond who owns more than 11 per cent of Greencore, will be expecting an update on the progress of the rationalisation.

Greencore has made no statement since it issued a preclose period update in early April. Back then, the company said that "good progress" had been made on the reorganisation and integration of Hazlewood and that annual cost savings of more than £7 million sterling a year will be generated by the end of the second full year postacquisition. The sale process of the other non-core activities was on time and in line with the business plan.

Mr Dilger set himself the target of £120 million worth of asset sales within 18 months. That 18-month period will not expire until this time next year, but the market will be expecting some substantive news that - seven months after the deal was done - the rationalisation process is on track.

The shortage of news on the rationalisation is undoubtedly the reason for the market's reluctance to push Greencore shares ahead. The shares have actually fallen 20 cents since the Hazlewood deal was first announced last November and that's against the background of the Irish market hitting all-time highs in the past couple of weeks.

On a prospective price/ earnings ratio of 7.4, the market is adopting a wait-and-see attitude until it establishes that the rationalisation is on track to meet the £120 million target. Any indication that Greencore will not meet that target within its specified time period will not be well-received.