Pet Foods Pay Off Big for Del Monte Foods

---

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Del Monte Foods Company (NYSE:DLM) (San Francisco, California) recently released earnings for the company's first quarter of the 2010 fiscal year, representing the three months ending August 2, 2009. Net sales for the company increased 12% year over year, moving from $726.2 million in 1Q09 to $813.7 million in 1Q10. This sales increase was driven largely by an increase in sales in the company's Pet Products segment.

Net sales in the company's Consumer Products segment, which manufactures and sells produce and food products, were $401.4 million, 4.7% higher than the same period last year. Price adjustments and a cost-reduction program helped increase the segment's operating income more than 227% for the quarter, moving from $10 million last year to $32 million in 1Q10. Net sales in Del Monte's Pet Products segment, at $412 million, were up 20.3% year over year. Operating income of $103 million for the segment was up a staggering 568% year over year.

"We are extremely pleased with the performance of our pet business, with Q1 topline growth of 20% and record operating income of over $100 million," said Chairman and CEO Rick Wolford in a conference call. "Our Q1 net sales reflect strong base unit volume growth, particularly in Pet Snacks and the benefit of fiscal 2009 pricing actions, partially offset by elasticity."

With such gains in the company's Pet Products segment, Del Monte's project investments seem to be on the right track. Earlier this year, Del Monte completed a $26 million addition to the company's pet food plant in Topeka, Kansas. A 427,000-square-foot distribution was added to the facility to help increase regional distribution. Construction took about a year and was completed in March. An estimated $1 million maintenance turnaround is scheduled for January 2010 at the company's nearby pet food plant in Lawrence, Kansas, while another maintenance turnaround is scheduled later in the year at the company's Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, pet food plant. Information on these and other Food & Beverage Industry projects can be found in Industrial Info's North American Industrial Database.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy related markets. For more than 26 years, Industrial Info has provided plant and project opportunity databases, market forecasts, high resolution maps, and daily industry news.

View Plant Profile - 1519909 1519908 1513778
View Project Report - 033001225 033001419 012004852

Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy related markets. For more than 26 years, Industrial Info has provided plant and project opportunity databases, market forecasts, high resolution maps, and daily industry news.