Executive pay levels raised 7.2% at Total Produce

Executive pay levels at Total Produce rose by over 7% last year, the Irish fruit distributor’s latest annual report shows.

Chairman Carl McCann, chief executive Rory Byrne, finance director Frank Davis, and director Frank Gernon shared a total pot of just over €2.53m last year, up from €2.36m in the previous year.

Mr Byrne’s remuneration package rose from €913,000 to just over €1m, while that of Mr McCann increased from €725,000 to €736,000.

Mr Davis’s total package increased by 5.6% to €606,000 and Mr Gernon — who ceased his full-time role in 2013 but continues in a part-time financial advisory role — was paid €154,000.

Combined overall remuneration for Total Produce’s four-strong non-executive director team, including Shannon Group chairwoman Rose Hynes and DAA chief Kevin Toland, increased last year from €3.65m to just short of €4m.

Last month, Total Produce — the former general produce arm of banana giant Fyffes — reported a strong performance for 2016, with group revenues climbing 9% to €3.76bn and adjusted pre-tax profits up 17% at €67.7m.

Earlier this month, Mr Byrne said the company could fetch up to €1bn if targeted for takeover, well above its current market value of €637m.

Total Produce has been looking at buying other firms of late; spending €60m on acquisitions in Europe and north America last year. A €28.4m spend on another 30% of Canadian produce group Oppenheimer was announced last month, taking Total’s stake to 65%. A joint-venture announcement between Oppenheimer and New Zealand group T&G Global also expands Total Produce’s presence in south-east Asia.

On the back of last year’s acquisition spree, Total Produce ended 2016 with net debt of €48.4m, compared to €18.1m a year earlier. Still, the company retains significant financial flexibility with net debt only 0.5 times earnings and management has already said it is “continuing to actively pursue additional acquisitions”.

“The group is in a very strong financial position with capacity to pursue further acquisitions in Europe, north America and further afield”, the group said in its annual report, saying that trading conditions in the early part of 2017 have been “satisfactory”.