AgriNurture Inc. (ANI), the listed agricultural firm led by businessman Antonio Tiu, said its income in the first semester fell 65 percent to P122.06 million from last year’s P357 million due to the absence of one-time gains.
However, the company said it recorded growth in revenues and recurring profit. In its disclosure, the company said revenues for the period rose 29 percent to P2.31 billion from last year’s P1.79 billion.
For the second quarter alone, its revenues grew 14 percent to P1.1 billion from last year’s P965.85 million. Net income, meanwhile, fell 74 percent to P82 million from last year’s P325.28 million.
“The company continues to grow despite the impact of the pandemic on our operations,” Tiu said. “During these trying times, our revenues still grew 29 percent while recurring operating profit actually jumped by 70 percent.”
In the first six months of 2020, ANI booked P281.33 million in non-operating income mainly as a result of the increase in the trademark valuation for the group’s “Big Chill” brand. Recurring operating profit grew 65 percent to P102.5 million from P61.87 million last year.
For the first six months of the year, the group’s Philippine operations contributed 46 percent while sales from foreign operations accounted for 54 percent of consolidated sales.
Export sales grew 9 percent to P883.1 million year-over-year due to the stable selling prices of banana and coco juice in the international market, constant supply of raw materials and the increase in demand from customers in China and the United States.
The company said the export sales of fruits rose significantly—in terms of volume and price—after the Chinese government lifted the lockdown. Also, sales for coco juice went up due to the increase in demand in the US during the period.
Combined foreign trading operations in the first two quarters of the year surged by 59 percent to P1.25 billion, from P784.77 million last year, mainly due to the lifting of the lockdown by the Chinese government.
To further drive sales growth, the group launched its own e-commerce platform through its ANI Express website and mobile application where customers can order fresh produce, canned beverages, rice and other essential goods for delivery to customers.
The company is also launching new products, such as plant-based meat, non-dairy coco ice cream, functional health drinks in cans under the Big Chill brand for local and export distribution.