Company update: Kiotech International reports strong sales

Kiotech International, the supplier of natural high performance feed additives to enhance growth, health and sustainability in agriculture and aquaculture, has announced significantly increased sales, profit and earnings per share in its preliminary results for the year ended 31 December 2010. During the year the group largely completed the integration of the Optivite Group, whose results are included for the full year.

Sales nearly doubled to £21.565m (2009 £10.955m) boosted by a maiden full year contribution from Optivite coupled with organic growth (2009: 3 months contribution).

Total underlying profit before tax and exceptional items more than doubled to £1.877 million (2009: £0.764 million) with Profit before tax of £1.517 million (2009: £1.409 million) includes exceptional costs of £0.261 million relating to the restructuring of the Group.

Operations – International agriculture
The international division, operating under the Optivite and Kiotechagil brands, continued to make progress during the year. Of the 61 countries supplied, there were particularly strong performances in Argentina, Bangladesh, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico and Turkey.

The main focus continues to be to introduce a number of new products to distributors around the world. Malaysia demonstrated the potential of Agil’s Neutox, new feed safety product and other new products being launched include a new range of enzymes and omega-3 supplements; the latter enhancing fertility, viability of young animals, growth rate and also increase the omega-3 content of meat and eggs.

Operations – UK agriculture
In the UK, sales are now focused on higher margin feed additive products to the major integrators, vitamin and mineral premixers and the pig and poultry home-mix segment.

The organic feed brand Vitrition had a solid year and it is expected that the more stringent EU legislation, relating to the proportion of use of solely organic raw materials in feed, coming into force over the next 12 months, will favour Vitrition owing to its dedicated organic feed content, mill and formulations.

Outlook
The group has made a solid start to the year, with further sales growth in the international division. Management’s focus is to capture the cross-selling opportunities between the Optivite and Kiotechagil brands as well as the launch of a number of new product ideas across the group. Territory expansion initiatives will concentrate on China and Brazil which between them account for over 40% of world pig and poultry meat production.

Source: Kiotech International