August 31, 2009
Ridley Corp records loss of US$33 million in 2008-09
Animal feed producer Ridley Corp has recorded a loss of A$39.5 million (US$33 million) in 2008-09, but believes the worst is over.
The result included one-off significant items, including a non-cash loss of A$52.4 million on the sale of Ridley's 69 percent interest in Ridley Inc; and A$7.4 million from the impairment of Ridley AgriProducts' Supplements business, costs from relocating from Sydney to Melbourne, and costs from defending the takeover bid by GrainCorp.
Underlying profit was A$20.3 million, up A$4.4 million or 27.6 percent on-year. But after taking into account a number of factors, including lower finance costs from reduced debt, the effective outcome was an after-tax result of A$28.1 million.
Ridley said it will largely focus on further improvement to current businesses in 2010, while looking out for opportunities that match its core competencies as a processor of value-added agricultural products.
Ridley expects to see more consolidation opportunities in the animal feed sector in which the company is uniquely-positioned to take full advantage of, according to the corporation.
The company said that since the end of the 2008-09 financial year, it had entered into a new contract with chicken supplier Inghams, which would result in the re-opening of Ridley's Clifton facility in southeast Queensland and growth in poultry volumes in South Australia.