BRIGHT Dairy & Food Co Ltd has reported its net profit increased 32.6 percent last year although it failed to meet sales target due to a partnership break with Group Danone SA.
The nation's third largest dairy maker, which trailed Inner Mongolia-based Yili and Mengniu, gained a net profit of 213 million yuan (US$30 million) last year, compared with 160 million yuan from a year earlier, the company said in a statement filed to the Shanghai Stock Exchange yesterday. Sales rose 10.25 percent to 8.2 billion yuan during the same period, including a 13.7-percent increase for its dairy products business to 6.4 billion yuan.
Bright Dairy's retail business climbed 1.9 percent to 1.6 billion yuan for the first 11 months last year before it sold a subsidiary which controls Kedi convenience stores nationwide.
However, the sizzling sales still failed to meet an earlier target of 8.6 billion yuan. Bright Dairy blamed the shortfall on the withdrawal of French dairy maker Danone's permission which allowed it to produce and sell the latter's famous yogurt products.
Bright Dairy aims for sales revenue of 7.7 billion yuan and profit of 162 million yuan this year. It plans to invest 490 million yuan this year to build factories, develop new products and upgrade facilities.