Pre-tax profits at the Waterford-based meat processor Arrow Group fell by 16% to €31.53 million last year, according to the Irish Independent.
The group claimed that higher costs for raw materials, a strengthening euro and increased labour costs all contributed to the double-digit drop.
Increased Staff
The group suffered the pre-tax losses despite posting an increase in revenues by 9%, from €499 million to €545 million.
The number of staff currently employed by the group rose by 6.7% last year, now sitting at approximately 1,910 people. As a result, staff costs increased from €70.2 million to €75.82 million in the 12 months to the end of December last year.
The directors' report stated that the increase in turnover is driven by increased activity across all markets, “with some key customer wins in 2017”.
Last year the group spent €7.5 million on research and development and took a €6.6 million gain from the value of investment properties.
© 2018 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Aidan O’Sullivan. Click subscribe to sign up for the Checkout print edition.
