Southern England Farms (SEF) has switched its crop focus and predicted an increase in profit margins after admitting the winter cauliflower market has become “unsustainable”.
The Cornwall-based supplier’s profits were hit after experiencing two years of declining cauliflower sales and difficult weather conditions, but the company has responded by reducing its winter cauliflower business to counter the losses, in turn increasing production of other vegetable crops.
Owner and managing director Greville Richards told FPJ: “After two very tough years we will shortly be announcing a healthy profit for 2010. The two previous years is not something we would want to revisit after experiencing large crop losses due to extreme weather conditions.”
SEF has switched to a more diverse range of products with an increase in summer broccoli and courgettes after winter cauliflower production became “unsustainable”, he added.
“A considerable profit was made in 2010 and this will be reflected in the next submission,” Richards said. “The turnaround that we have experienced in 2010 is, in part, due to focusing on more profitable products and reducing our exposure to high-risk, high-cost winter cauliflower. Winter cauliflower was hit badly in 2009 by the hard frosts resulting in significant crop losses. The year was also affected by poor planting conditions due to the wet summer. Further losses were experienced on imported loads bought to cover the crop shortfall as the additional cost of these was not always reflected in the price paid by customers.”
SEF added that it lost £260,000 in 2009 when an unnamed Italian exporter went out of business, hitting several other UK suppliers too.
The company also stressed it has several initiatives in the pipeline for the coming year and crop prospects are stronger. Richards said: “SEF crops suffered less in the frosts during this winter than those in other areas of the country and hence the company is in a good position to capitalise on current and expected market conditions. Summer crop planting is well underway to fulfil increased summer programs.”
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