Australian yeast and natural ingredients company Burns Philp this week reported a healthy 65 per cent jump in net profit to A$146.2 million (€80m) for the fiscal year ended 30 June 2002, despite a drop of 2.1 per cent in sales to A$1.39 billion.
The company said its net profit and also earnings before interest and tax both rose in line with forecasts, before adjusting for significant one-off items. The company added that the leap in net profit was boosted by a one-off A$47.9 million tax gain in relation to its US businesses.
According to a statement this week the result reflected improved margins, cost reductions and other projects designed to boost profits - in addition, growth in developing markets also led to increased earnings.
Burns Philp reported difficult trading conditions in some markets, including Turkey and South America but it insisted that the overall financial performance emphasised the underlying strength and diversity of its global yeast operations.