Bakery supplier CSM saw sales in Europe rise by 2% to €260.9m in the third quarter of 2010, driven by higher volumes in frozen products.
EBITA increased from €12.2m to €16m compared with the third quarter in 2009, while CSM’s overall sales for the third quarter rose to €783.7m from €634.5m in 2009, mainly due to the acquisition of US bakery manufacturer Best Brands earlier this year.
CEO Gerard Hoetmer said: “In Europe, the strategic investments in frozen products are delivering increased volumes. Together with cost management, these higher volumes contributed to the improvement in EBITA.
“At Bakery Supplies North America, we remain focused on the swift integration of Best Brands, allowing the organisation to maximise its combined potential as soon as possible.”
Hoetmer said he remained cautiously optimistic for the fourth quarter of 2010: “We expect our investments in our organisation and innovation to continue to create growth opportunities. The main contributor to market growth is consumer confidence, which is still weak in a number of markets.”
Herman Verstraeten (previously with Unilever) will head CSM’s European businesses as the new president of Bakery Supply Europe, while Marco Bertacca, as vice-president global bakery expansion strategy, will support the board in CSM’s expansion in new regions.
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