Premier Foods said rising sales were a sign it had a strong future as an independent company after US company McCormick abandoned a proposed takeover last month.
The company behind Bisto gravy and Mr Kipling cakes reported a 0.6% rise in annual sales to £772m, with sales for six of its major brands growing by an average of 3.4%.
“These six brands have received more focus on innovation and marketing investment over the last two years and this result clearly demonstrates that the group’s innovation and brand marketing strategy is working,” the company said.
Gavin Darby, chief executive, said it was an achievement against a backdrop of falling food prices. Food deflation has been running at a rate of about 1.5% to 2% over the past year, Premier said, partly driven by heightened competition in the grocery market and generally weak inflation.
Darby said: “We are very pleased to report sales growth both in the year and the fourth quarter in what continues to be a deflationary market. Our strategy of investing behind our brands and bringing new innovative products to market continues to deliver very positive results.
“The board is focused on delivering shareholder value and we see a strong future for Premier Foods with its leading category positions, great brands and strong operational cash flows.”
Premier made pre-tax losses of £13m, partly associated with its stake in Hovis bread, as well as another joint venture. Adjusted profit before tax in the year to 2 April increased by 3.5% to £86.1m.
Last month Premier managed to shake off the advances of US company McCormick after it made three attempts to buy the food company. The maker of Schwartz dried spices and sauces abandoned its takeover approach, conceding it would not be able to offer a price acceptable to Premier.
Premier Foods has however strengthened its ties with Nissin, a Japanese instant noodles company that has built a 19.9% stake in the UK company. Premier is hoping to benefit from Nissin’s strength in key markets such as the US, China and Brazil through co-operation on branding and distribution. It also hopes to boost sales of existing products by using Nissin’s portfolio of patents to improve them.
Premier announced on Tuesday it had appointed Nissin’s managing director, Tsunao Kijima, as a non-executive director.
