Madrid, 31 August 2009 - Despite the recent events affecting the Group and the prevailing context of recession, the business of SOS Corporación Alimentaria, world leader in olive oil and brand leader in rice, continued to gain ground in the first half of the year, recording an increase in sales of 5.5% to reach a turnover of EUR 714 million.
In the first half of 2009 the company obtained a recurrent Ebitda of EUR 54.3 million and an after-tax result of –61.6 million. The negative result was entirely due to non-recurrent provisions and one-off financial costs arising from exchange-rate hedge instruments.
Following the purchase of the Bertolli olive-oil business, the Group’s international business outside Spain now accounts for 70% of sales and 83% of Ebitda. In the olive-oil sector SOS Corporación is today the world leader with a market share estimated at 22%. Its olive-oil brands are present in all five continents.
In the United States, where consumption of olive-oil is increasing consistently, SOS has an estimated market share of 30%, taking into account major distribution networks, plus hostelry and restaurant customers (Horeca). In Italy its share is about 25%, higher than the share occupied by distribution brands. In Spain SOS Corporación now accounts for 20% of total purchases of olive oil, having achieved a significant recovery in market share in the first half of 2009. This was led by its Carbonell brand, sales of which moved up sharply in the month of June to account for 26.5% of its leading product, mild refined olive oil. In rice, the SOS brand is the head-and-shoulders leader in Spain with a market share in round rice of 28.5%.
NEW ADMINISTRATIVE STRUCTURE AND MANAGEMENT LINE-UP SOS Corporación Alimentaria S.A. has completely revised its administrative structure, now focused on countries and markets, and has introduced major changes to its management line-up. This is to adapt the Group to its multinational status, given that 70% of turnover is now obtained outside Spain. The new organisation, approved by the board, places the emphasis on countries and markets, coordinated by a single corporate entity bringing together the departments of finance, means, procurement, legal and R&D, under the control of managing director José Manuel Muriel.
The board has also approved the appointment of a director of global purchasing and a director of internal auditing, two new board posts for the Group. They will report to board chairman Mariano Pérez Claver.
The senior managers per country and market are as follows:
Spain. Spanish operations will be headed by Juan José Landázuri, of Spanish nationality. He joined the Group in November 2008 as commercial manager for Iberia and now moves up to general manager for Spain. Landázuri, an industrial engineer with an MBA, has spent most of his working life with Kraft, where he was entrusted with various business units and Group departments.
Southern Europe. This market accounts for 33% of Group sales. It will be headed by Fabio Maccari, of Italian nationality, who joined the Group in 2005 coinciding with the Group’s purchase of Minerva. A nuclear engineer by training, Maccari has worked throughout his career in the food industry, specifically in the olive-oil segment, having obtained senior posts in companies such as Kraft Italia, Unilever Italia and Minerva SpA.
North America. The Italian Marco de Ceglie will be in charge of the North American market, which represents 24% of sales and 37% of Group Ebitda. De Ceglie, who has a degree in economics and trade, joined SOS in June 2009, having previously worked with Unilever Italia from 1980, heading the olive-oil division, together with its international and financial departments.
Western Europe. This region, to be managed by the German Christiaan Hintzen, incorporates all the countries of the European Union with the exception of Spain and Italy. Hintzen, who holds degrees in business SOS Corporación Alimentaria S.A.
3 administration and IT systems, plus an MBA, joined SOS in 2008 as managing director of the Netherlands. He has broad experience in the food industry, having worked for 20 years with the multinational Heineken, serving in various countries in which this brewery enjoys a leading market position.
COST CUTS AND DEBT RESTRUCTURING
SOS Corporación has also agreed, in partnership with Accenture, to set up a plan to improve business efficiency and productivity by a system of shared costs, implementation of which is scheduled to extend over the next two years. Meanwhile in the course of the next few weeks Crédit Suisse plans to present the Group’s banking creditors with a financial restructuring plan, of which the capital increase agreed by the board in May was the first step.