Birds Eye, one of the United Kingdom's leading frozen food brands, saw a steep increase in revenue and operating profit during 2020 as consumers turned to frozen products during the pandemic.
The company reported a 2020 revenue of GBP 732 million (€854 million/$1 billion) and an operating profit of GBP 105 million (€122.5 million/$145.3 million), corresponding to a year-on-year increase of 50.7 percent and a massive 775 percent, respectively.
The main challenge for Birds Eye going forward is continuing the path of growth in the frozen fish category and building on the accelerated trends of the previous year, Birds Eye UK General Manager Steve Challouma told IntraFish in January 2021.
"For frozen food, and frozen fish in particular, we had already been seeing steady growth over the past five years, so the events of 2020 are boosting a trend that was already being experienced," he said.
"As such, we have a good opportunity to grow the category further through 2021, building on the increased penetration by reinforcing our messaging around the quality, variety, sustainability and excellent health credentials that our products can deliver," said Challouma.
Birds Eye is a member of the Nomad Foods group, which produces frozen products under several brands, including Bird’s Eye, Iglo, Findus, Goodfella’s and Aunt Bessie’s. Aunt Bessie’s and Goodfella’s were acquired in 2019.
Earlier this year, Nomad Foods said it expects growth in 2021 and beyond to come from expanding areas of the business and the company's focused merger and acquisition strategy.
The company guidance for 2021 puts organic revenue growth in the region of 1-2 percent, a target CEO Stefan Descheemaeker has noted as "ambitious" following an 8.5 percent increase in 2020.
Nomad Foods announced in June that it is planning to refinance existing loans, increase its revolving cash flow facility and issue a new €750 million ($911.4 million) bond, in order to finance its recent acquisition of Fortenova Group.
Fish accounts for 40 percent of the group and vegetables 20 percent, while the company's "Green Cuisine" plant-based line has moved from zero to €30 million ($37 million) in less than two years, with plans to increase this to €100 million ($122 million) in the next two years.
