Britvic cannot rule out more cuts

BRITVIC is not ruling out more job cuts in Ireland as revenue in the year to the end of September fell 5.6% to £189.5 million (€209.6m).

It said the Irish soft drink sector is showing no indication of a return to growth in the short term but it plans to compete “aggressively” in the market in the run-up to Christmas. Managing director Andrew Richards said the company is well positioned to take advantage of any uplift in the market when it comes.

Mr Richards said most of the company’s cost-cutting measures are complete but added that he “wouldn’t rule anything in or out in the current environment”.

He also said it is difficult to predict when there will be a turnaround in the Irish market.

Grocery market volumes are down 5% in the year in Ireland while the licensed on-premises market is down 19% in the year to August.

Britvic Ireland, whose portfolio of drinks includes Ballygowan, Club and Cidona, has introduced cost-cutting measures which have seen the company save €15.3m to date.

It plans to save €27m by the end of 2011. From January this year investment in the Kylemore production facility in Dublin facilitated the production of Robinson’s squash for the Irish market for the first time. It said core brands have played a “significant part in the robust performance of the business”.

7-Up has retained its position as the number two soft drinks brand in the market and Pepsi has become the fastest-growing carbonate brand, up 14%.

On a group level Britvic, the maker of Robinson’s fruit drinks said full-year profit rose 47% after sales advanced. Net income for the year ended September 27 climbed to £46.8m from 31.8m a year earlier. Revenue climbed to £978.8m.

Britvic grew “market share and revenue across all key categories” in the past year, the company said. Britvic said in July that it benefited from consumers spending more on “big scale value categories” such as cola and juice drinks.

Chief executive Paul Moody said: “Our planning assumption is that consumer behaviour in relation to soft drinks will continue to be focused on brands offering great value.

“Our sense would be that 2010 will probably be no worse than 2009 but not necessarily significantly better.”