Unigate's £250m sale of its dairy business to Dairy Crest has prompted the company to consider a name change. The Unigate moniker is closely linked to its dairy heritage, so the idea of a change would not have been appropriate until the dairy disposals had been agreed. The news came as chief executive Ross Buckland reported a slump in pretax profit to £35.2m on £2.9bn turnover for the year to April 1. This compares with £155m pretax profit and £2.3bn turnover the year before. The group is close to completing the integration of last year's acquisitions Terranova Foods and Marie. "The group now has a portfolio of businesses and a range of products which are capable of delivering a higher rate of growth," said Buckland. The results suggest that pigmeat subsidiary Malton Foods, which recovered in the second half to return a £15.4m profit for the year, could be looking at added value product options later this summer when its planning application for an extension is formally approved. Unigate's results showed a £59.4m provision for rationalising its fresh foods business. Of this, £24.2m was posted against Malton, which has closed both Ahoghill and Enniskillen, as well as mothballing its Spalding killing line. The remaining £35.2m rationalisation costs consisted of the closure of St Ivel's Chichester facility and exiting the group's French yogurt and desserts business. {{NEWS }}

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