Agthia Group, one of the UAE’s leading food and beverage groups, has reported first quarter 2018 net profit of Dh47 million ($12.7 million) on revenues of Dh491 million ($133.6 million), representing like-for-like revenue growth of 3.7 per cent compared to the same period in 2017.

Agthia’s like-for-like profit growth amounted to 10.1 per cent, fuelled by cost optimisation efforts across most lines in its consumer goods business, said a statement.

The group’s flagship water category continued its growth momentum driven by Al Ain Water, the UAE’s number one bottled drinking water brand.

The beverages category, comprising of Capri Sun juice drinks and Al Ain fresh juices, witnessed softening demand due to changing consumer preferences with the introduction of the VAT and a generally declining juice market.

Meanwhile net revenues of the food category registered a rise of 16.8 per cent from Q1 2017.

Eng Dhafer Ayed Al Ahbabi, chairman of Agthia, said: “Despite a challenging operating environment that saw the introduction of VAT and other headwinds, we continued to grow in line with our 2020 strategy.”

“We began 2018 with major steps that speak to our dedication as innovators in all of our industries, and we intend to continue to grow all of our businesses through the same kind of innovative thinking,” he said.

The group signed an agreement in Q1 2018 with the department of urban planning and municipalities to manage Abu Dhabi’s and Al Ain’s food service centres, supplying UAE citizens with a range of consumer products at discounted prices and promising to reinforce the Group’s growth in consumer goods.

Eng Tariq Ahmed Al Wahedi, chief executive officer, Agthia, said: “We continue to pursue our mission to be a regional leader in delivering the best quality, nutritious and responsibly produced products.”

“The launch in January of ‘Al Ain Vitamin D Water ’, offering a novel way of helping address the UAE’s vitamin D deficiency, has significantly contributed in this mission. Further product introductions will reinforce our drive to grow through innovation in the food and beverage business and regional growth will continue to drive our business in the years to come,” he added.

Agthia’s consumer categories now represent 53 per cent of total group revenues, compared to less than 20 per cent only a decade ago.

The group’s other division, the agri business - consisting of Grand Mills Flour and Agrivita Animal Feed categories, has successfully weathered growth challenges in the wake of subsidy rationalisation over the past two years.

As part of these efforts, Agthia recently entered into an innovation and technology partnership with Trouw Nutrition Hifeed, a Nutreco Company that is the global leader in animal nutrition and aquafeed, to develop a portfolio of products and services for optimised nutrition, enhanced animal performance and improved economic efficiency in poultry and ruminants for the Agrivita brand.

The announcement of the Q1 results follows the conclusion of Agthia’s 13th annual general meeting (AGM) held on April 26 in Abu Dhabi.

Among other published agenda items, a cash dividend of Dh0.15 per share has been approved by the AGM. Shareholders entitled for cash dividends are those recorded in the Share Register on May 6.

Due to several one-off items in the first quarter financials of 2017 which did not repeat in 2018, the group’s reported revenues and profit appear lower in Q1 2018 compared to Q1 2017, it stated. – TradeArabia News Service