Company Review: The Caledonian Cheese Company A guide to your milk buyer February 2012 The Caledonian Cheese Company Company profile The Caledonian Cheese Company Limited1, The Fresh Milk Company Limited and McLelland Cheese Packing Limited are all part of the Lactalis McLelland Limited group which is itself owned by the French dairy company Lactalis. The parent company Lactalis was the third largest dairy company in the world according to Rabobank’s rankings2. Following its acquisitions of Puleva in Spain (2010) and Parmalet in Italy (July 2011), however, it now claims to be the largest maker of dairy products worldwide. Lactalis produces a wide range of dairy products and has access to all major markets although its main product market is cheese followed by liquid milk. Its main markets are France and Italy which account for 26% and 18% respectively of its sales revenues. Lactalis Group has based its external growth on developing its brands and on an active policy of acquisitions both in France and abroad. Its acquisition strategy is to involve itself with ‘high visibility brands’ as opposed to dairy commodity products and to purchase strong local brands to support growth. Its bid to purchase the Swedish dairy business Skånemejerier3, the second largest dairy co-operative in Sweden, fits into this strategy and provides Lactalis with access to Scandanavian markets and to extend the product markets it is involved with. UK activities are consolidated through Lactalis McLelland Limited, which is involved in the manufacture, import, sale and trade in cheese and other dairy products. Each of the group’s subsidiaries is responsible for certain dedicated activities within the company. The Fresh Milk Company Limited is responsible for milk procurement, The Caledonian Cheese Company Limited is responsible for production, marketing and distribution of cheese and dairy products based in Stranraer while packaging operations are done through McLelland Cheese Packing Limited. Its non-manufacturing activities are centralised at its Redhill location. As part of the Lactalis group, its UK operations benefit from the strong commercial network that Lactalis has both in the UK and abroad, and from an important source of capital that can be used for advertising, marketing and investments. The majority of milk purchased within Britain is used by The Caledonian Cheese Company for cheese production at its main factory in Stranraer, notably under the Seriously Strong brand. In addition, it is involved in the production of territorial and goat cheeses at its Lubborn creamery in Somerset and in a joint venture in the Orkney Cheese Company. It also owns the Rachel’s Organic brand, which was purchased from Dean Foods in July 2010. In the branded Cheddar market, the key competitors to Lactalis’ Seriously Strong brand are Cathedral City from Dairy Crest and Pilgrims Choice from Adams Foods Ltd. For its own-label cheeses, it will compete with the other major manufacturers of own-label Cheddar and territorial cheeses as well as with imported products. 1 2 3 2 As part of the research for this report, Lactalis McLelland Limited did not participate in an interview, nor provide any information on its strategy, targets or performance. All of the information within this report has been accessed from published sources, such as company accounts, websites and press articles unless otherwise indicated. The most recent set of accounts for Lactalis McLelland Limited and its associated companies are for the year ending 31 December 2010 which were filed at Companies House in September 2011. Rabobank International. Global Dairy Top-20. June 2011. Based on valuations in Euros for the 2010 financial year. At time of writing, the board of Skånemejerier’s council had approved the takeover although the final details had not yet been agreed. During 2010, the Cheddar market was significantly impacted by the high level of promotions used to drive consumer demand. While promotional activity slowed during 2011, the continued pressure on consumers’ budgets has meant retailers have not been receptive to price increases and trading conditions in the Cheddar market have continued to be difficult. Current position: • Lactalis McLelland is one of the largest producers of Cheddar in Britain and its Seriously Strong brand is the second largest selling Cheddar brand4. • Difficult trading conditions during 2010 and 2011 have impacted volume and value retail sales of its key branded products, although the drop in value was partly offset by increasing wholesale values of Cheddar. • The company has diversified its activities within the UK in recent years into soft cheeses and yogurt through its acquisitions of the Lubborn Creamery (in 2009) and the Rachel’s brand (in 2010), giving the parent company a wider UK presence. • Lactalis McLelland has access to resources from its global parent in terms of commercial networks, best practice and a source of funds for investments and marketing. Its global presence has continued to grow following acquisitions of leading dairy companies in Spain and Italy. • The company is mainly involved in added value dairy products, although also sells powders derived from its cheese-making activities. • It secures the majority of its raw milk requirements from direct suppliers. • Centralised non-manufacturing activities to its Redhill offices in 2010, resulting in the closure of two offices. Future challenges and opportunities: • The Lactalis Group’s activities are concentrated on cheese within Western Europe and it aims to pursue acquisitions which will allow it to pursue growth in milk product markets and in the emerging markets of Asia and Latin America. • The UK company is reliant on the performance of Seriously Strong Cheddar and growth of the UK branded Cheddar market. • Further investment in marketing or product development for Seriously Strong may be necessary to achieve brand leadership. • The potential for increased import competition for its UK operation exists in the longer term if Ireland is successful in its strategy to increase total milk production following the removal of quotas. • UK Cheese markets will remain competitive with the major retailers looking to streamline 4 Based on Kantar Worldpanel data for the 52-week period ending 2 October 2011. 3 their branded cheese category to build market share in own-label products. • Faces the challenge of passing rising input costs on to retail customers (within the UK) during a period of low growth and price sensitivity at consumer level. • Increasing recruitment activities within its milk field (South-West Scotland) may increase competition for raw milk suppliers, which may impact on milk price paid to direct suppliers. • Has the opportunity to develop export sales of its Seriously Strong brand through the use of other operating companies in the Lactalis group. 4 The Caledonian Cheese Company Procurement analysis Milk purchases The table below gives details of Caledonian Cheese’s5 milk supply base for the 2010/11 milk year. Direct supplies Third party supplies Stranraer Lubborn Co-operatives and other brokers Million litres 270 13 53 Numbers 175 11 Total Change from previous year 336 n.c 186 n.c. Source: AHDB estimates Lactalis McLelland Ltd has changed its procurement significantly since 2006 when 80% of milk was supplied by First Milk. The strategy over recent years has been to source around 20% of milk through brokers with the remainder coming from producers on direct supply contracts. Brokered milk is sourced from a number of suppliers such as Milk Link, Grahams and Meadow Foods. Given the good grazing conditions which occurred during the 2010/11 milk year, combined with the incentives offered by the company to increase production levels, it is likely that milk deliveries from direct suppliers increased over the period6. Assuming that producers increased production at the national rate of 4%, total milk purchases will have been 10m litres higher from direct suppliers to Stranraer and 1m litres more for suppliers to the Lubborn site. It is assumed that purchases from third party suppliers will have dropped to compensate for the increase in direct supply volumes as the Stranraer facility was operating near to full capacity in 2009/10. In the absence of an increase in production capacity at the site, total volume requirements are unlikely to have changed significantly. It has been assumed that the number of producers on direct supply contracts did not change over the period. Direct suppliers to the company were paid one of highest milk prices during the 2010/11 milk year and the company was offering bonus payments for increased production. It is therefore unlikely that suppliers would leave under those conditions. The total number of direct suppliers may be different to that reported as the number of new recruits or retirements is unknown. Recruitment The Caledonian Cheese Company has a target to increase its processing capacity at the Stranraer factory to 390m litres of milk by 2015. This would require 70m litres (21.9%) of additional milk, of which the majority (60m litres) is expected to come from direct suppliers. The 5 6 All milk purchases for Caledonian Cheese are now done through its procurement arm The Fresh Milk Company Limited. Changes to milk purchases have been estimated as the company did not provide any information on volumes or producer numbers for the 2010/11 milk year. 5 company offers bonuses for pre-agreed expansion in order to encourage increased production from its direct suppliers. Through the procurement company The Fresh Milk Company Limited, milk for Stranraer is sourced from a radius of approximately 100 miles around the factory, which equates geographically to all of Dumfries and Galloway and along the West Coast of Scotland as far as Kilmarnock in East Ayrshire and Carlisle in Cumbria. There are no minimum or maximum volume requirements for new suppliers and all farm sizes and production profiles are considered within the defined recruitment area. The average size of current suppliers is relatively large at 1.5m litres, although there is a wide range of farm sizes currently supplying the Stranraer facility. Contracts The table below summarises the main features of the supply contracts offered by The Fresh Milk Company Limited7 for suppliers to the Stranraer factory8. There are three contract options: Standard, Profile and Seasonal. Which option is better will depending on the milk profile of each producer. Standard Profile Million litres 270 Producer numbers 175 Cheddar cheese and ingredients End use Catchment area Seasonal South-West Scotland and North Cumbria (within a 100 mile radius of Stranraer) Annual average price 2010/11* 24.18ppl 24.79ppl 24.37ppl Annual average price as of Sep 11* 27.49ppl 28.17ppl 27.69ppl Reasons for price changes In response to price changes made by competitors – not linked to returns from commodity markets *Based on the DairyCo standard litre (see www.dairyco.org.uk/datum for further details). Note: Figures relate to the milk year 2010/11. Contracts are negotiated on a yearly basis and all producers are required to provide a 6-month forward forecast. As the company is actively encouraging increased production from its contracted farmers, bonus payments for meeting pre-arranged expansion plans are paid. 7 8 6 The Fresh Milk Company Limited is the procurement arm of Lactalis, and purchases all of the milk used by The Caledonian Cheese Company Limited for use at its Stranraer and Lubborn factories. No information was provided about the Lubborn contract. However, it concerns less than 15 farmers. Price Review Price changes are made as and when necessary by the company and are usually in response to changes in the milk price made by competitors. Price setting is not linked to commodity markets and there is no formal negotiation process in place although direct suppliers have input through meetings between the company and a supplier group committee. Price decreases are never introduced retrospectively although the company has occasionally paid a retrospective price increase. Prices paid on the Caledonian Cheese supply contracts were competitive during the 2010/11 milk year according to the DairyCo standard litre. Average prices paid by the company were consistently above the average price paid9 on cheese contracts. In the 2011/12 milk year, there have been three price increases totalling 2.3ppl, keeping the price near the top of the DairyCo league table for cheese manufacturers. A further increase of 1.23ppl was implemented effective November 2011, which makes the price paid for milk on a cheese contract one of the highest in the industry. Exit policy Producers are required to give three months notice to exit and can give this at any time of the year so that it is genuinely three months. This is shorter than what is typically required by milk buyers in Britain and provides farmer suppliers more flexabililty to change milk buyers. Additional benefits To promote increased milk production, The Fresh Milk Company offers bonus payments for volume expansion. Pre-agreed expansion qualifies for a bonus set at between +0.1ppl and +0.4ppl depending on the level of expansion10. Direct suppliers also have access to interest free loans in the form of an advance of up to six months against the monthly milk cheque. There is a supplier group committee of seven elected producers who meet on a monthly basis with Caledonian Cheese. Formal issues by suppliers are raised and discussed through this committee. Caledonian Cheese makes a point of remaining close to its suppliers, with each producer known and contacted on a personal basis which it states is one of the benefits of being a relatively small business unit. 9 10 Average price paid on all cheese contracts recorded in the DairyCo league table, based on its standard litre. For example 0.4ppl is paid out for pre-agreed expansion of 20%. 7 Highlights... • Caledonian Cheese paid one of the highest prices on a cheese contract in 2010/11 according to the DairyCo league table. • The company maintained its 80/20 split between contracted milk purchases and third party purchases in 2010/11. • There are no specific size or production profile requirements for potential suppliers, although its milk field for the Stranrear facility is restricted to within 100 miles of the site. • The notice period for suppliers to exit their contract is three months which is one of the lowest in the industry, providing direct suppliers more flexibility to change milk buyers. • The company offers added benefits such as bonuses for agreed expansion and interest free loans. 8 The Caledonian Cheese Company Production analysis Product portfolio The graph below provides a breakdown of products made at the Stranraer factory. Caledonian Cheese did not provide updated production figures for the 2010 production year although it can be assumed that there was no significant increase as the Stranraer facility was already working at full capacity. Total milk purchases 320m litres 73% Cheese 27% Ingredients (powders) 10% Other Cheddar brands 30% Own-label Cheddar 50% Seriously Strong Cheddar 10% Export or food services While no information was provided by Lactalis on its production portfolio, examination of its annual accounts and market performance indicate that total cheese production was roughly equivalent to the previous year. 9 The production capabilities at its main Stranraer facility are currently fully utilised, although the company aims to improve this through continued investment. It is unknown if there will be any accompanying increase in drying capacity which would impact on the level of powders produced. Production facilities Stranraer (320m litres) Facility type Liquid milk Cheese Ingredients/other Approximation of milk field Lubborn (24m litres) Lactalis McLelland operates two processing plants in the UK located at Stranraer in Scotland and Lubborn in England. The largest by far is the Stranraer factory which processes Cheddar cheese and powders, with a capacity to use 320m litres of milk per annum. The Lubborn factory has a capacity of 24m litres and produces Somerset Brie, Camembert and goats’ cheese. A third factory in Glan yr Afon was purchased in July 2010 as a joint venture between Lactalis and Nestlé and produces Rachel’s branded organic yogurts. This factory has a capacity of 15m litres per year and all of the milk is sourced from milk brokers. 10 According to Caledonian Cheese, the Stranraer plant is running at full capacity at around 1m litres/day, depending on the time of year. The plant runs at just over 1m litres/day for 8 months of the year and just under 1m litres/day for the remaining 4 months. During 2010, £1.4m was invested at the Stranraer factory to improve production efficiencies and its collection facilities. This follows an investment of £1.3m in the previous year. Markets The majority of The Caledonian Cheese Company’s sales are of Cheddar to the GB retail market, with around 5% sold to the foodservice industry and another 5% exported. Its powders are sold in both domestic and export markets to the food ingredients sector. According to Kantar Worldpanel data, the Cheddar retail market was worth in the region of £1.4 billion as of December 2011, with sales volumes up 0.6% and values up 4.7% between December 2010 and 2011. The strength of world commodity markets impacted on cheese prices, driving prices up at both the retail and wholesale levels. Higher prices, combined with the pressure on consumer incomes from the economic downturn, impacted on volume sales. The branded Cheddar segment lost market share to own-label Cheddar in volume terms during the year ending December 2011, although it gained share in terms of value. Branded Cheddar had a 46% volume share and 44% value share, losing out on volume sales over the period but showing growth in total sales value. Own-label Cheddar performed better during the year with growth in both volume and value sales and finishing the year with a 54% volume share and a 56% value share of the retail Cheddar market. Lactalis’ portfolio of branded Cheddar products, including its flagship Seriously Strong brand, performed well in the year ending December 2011, reporting increases in both value and volume sales according to Kantar Worldpanel data. Its premier brand, Seriously Strong, retained its position as the second largest branded Cheddar in the GB retail market as of December 2011 and, of the three largest brands, was the only one to show year-on-year growth. Highlights... • Caledonian Cheese is dependent on its performance in the Cheddar market which remained competitive during 2011. However, branded Cheddar products lost market share to own-label Cheddar during the year. • Seriously Strong Cheddar gained some market share during the year ending December 2011, both in terms of value and volume sales and retained its place as the second largest selling brand. • Lactalis has opportunities to diversify its income streams with the acquisition of Lubborn and Rachel’s and through developing export markets through Lactalis’ extensive international network. 11 The Caledonian Cheese Company Financial analysis Headline figures This section looks at the financial performance of Lactalis McLelland Limited as a whole and will therefore include activities such as the import and sales of continental cheese. Despite this, the majority of its turnover and profits are generated by UK activities and by the performance of Caledonian Cheese. Headline financial figures and ratios have been calculated from the most recent full set of accounts for Lactalis McLelland Limited. Operating profits do not include gains or losses from exceptional items, or profits or losses from associated undertakings. The definitions of the financial figures and ratios are available in the Appendix at the end of the report. Operating profit... Profit before tax... 7.0% 5.7% 8.8% £3.1 million £38.6 million £5.5 million year end 31/12/10 Total equity... year end 31/12/10 year end 31/12/10 Cash flow... Cash in: £1.9m Cash out:£4.0m investments £6.4m finance £8.5m from previous year • Operating profit for the year ending 31 December 2010 decreased 7.0% from £5.9 million in previous year. • While turnover increased sufficiently to cover increasing costs of sales, additional costs associated with the centralisation of non-manufacturing activities and losses in The Caledonian Cheese Company Limited impacted on total group profits. • Pre-tax profits were 5.7% up on the previous year level, due to a combination of lower financing costs and increased profits from associated businesses. • Total equity (including pension scheme liabilities) fell by 8.8% compared to last year, resulting from reduced reserves and increases in borrowings from group undertakings. 12 • Although current assets increased year-on-year, an increase of £44m in long term borrowings from related companies more than compensated for the £25m reduction in shortterm borrowings. • Total equity was also impacted by a dividend payout of £2.5 million in 2010. No dividends had been paid in 2009. • Cash from operating activities in 2010 was down from £21.8million, a decrease of 92%. • The reduction in cash from operating activities was mainly due to the increase in stocks (up £6.9 million), the increase in debtors (up £7.1 million), and a reduction in creditors (down £7.8 million). • The payment of £2.5m in dividends on the previous year’s profits also impacted cash flow. Financial Ratios Profitability ratios Gross margin 15.9% • Gross profit margin up from 14.9% in previous year. • This ratio is comparable to other processors with a similar production profile. • Production efficiencies may have helped to reduce the impact of rising costs of raw materials. Pre-tax profit margin 1.7% • The pre-tax profit margin ratio has not changed from 2009 results. • Indicates that UK operations did not generate high returns during the year, impacted by the difficulty in passing on rising costs to customers. • The low net margin percentage is not of concern as the company holds large reserves and has the support of its parent company. Return on capital employed (ROCE) 5.2% • The return on capital employed has decreased from the previous year (9.1%) as a result of an increase in long-term borrowings. • This ratio shows that profitability for the UK division of Lactalis has declined from the previous year. 13 Debt ratios Quick ratio 0.76 Current ratio 2.42 Gearing 63.4% • The quick ratio has increased from last year (0.44) due to the high value of cheese stocks. • The current ratio is higher than last year (1.52), impacted by an increase in the value of stocks. • Gearing has increased significantly from 34.3% in 2009. • The ratio indicates that in the absence of stocks, short-term debt obligations would not be fully met from available liquid assets. • Ratio shows a healthy liquidity position when cheese stocks are included in current assets. • Gearing is at a higher level due to the large increase in long-term debt. • It must be considered that the majority of the company’s longterm debt is owed to group undertakings, rather than commercial loans. Efficiency ratios Debtor days 49.2 Creditor days 25.2 • This stood at 44.2 days in 2009, indicating an increase in trade debt relative to turnover. • Creditor days increased compared to the previous year’s figure of 22.0 (not accounting for amounts owed to group undertakings or accruals). • Trade debt will have been impacted by increased wholesale prices for cheese. • The ratio is similar to other companies within the industry. 14 • Including accruals, the figure rises to 42.5 (38.1 in 2009), which remains in line with industry averages. Return on total assets 3.5 • The return on total assets has dropped from 4.1 in the previous year. • Indicates that for every £1 invested by the company, it generated £3.50 of operating revenues in the financial year. • The company’s tangible assets have not changed year-onyear, while increases in current assets are linked to the higher value of stocks and trade debt. Highlights... • Ratios suggest that profitability has declined. The company’s financial success for the 2010 financial year is likely to have been affected by the challenging conditions in the Cheddar market. • Debt levels have increased to support the company’s investments although the majority of debt is within the Lactalis Group. • Operating from within a large international dairy business allows the UK enterprise to continue to invest in production efficiencies and marketing in order to maintain its competitiveness through challenging economic conditions. • Stock values and trade debtors both increased in the year in line with higher wholesale prices for Cheddar. The higher stock value may also be an indication that stock levels have increased. 15 Annex 1 - Financial ratio calculations. Financial headline figures and ratios Calculation Interpretation Operating Profit Turnover less cost of sales (including overhead costs). NOT including exceptional or non-recurring items. Profit after cost of sales and overhead expenses (not including exceptional items) but before interest and tax. Indicates the efficiency to which a company generates profits from operating activities. Pre-tax Profit Profit before tax. Profit after all costs, including finance costs, exceptional and nonrecurring items, but before taxes and not accounting for actuarial gains/losses from pensions. The profits available to be disbursed to shareholders or added to reserves (before tax). Total Equity/ Member Reserves Issued capital plus reserves and revenue reserves. Shareholders or members’ funds. Needs to be examined in light of the direction of change over the past two to three years. Gross margin (Gross profit* (Turnover less cost of sales)/ Turnover) x 100 Shows how much it costs to get goods and services ready for sale. Indicates the amount of money the company has available for overheads from its turnover. Pre-tax profit margin (Pre-tax Profit/Turnover) x 100 Shows how efficient the company is at generating profits from sales. Indicates the amount of money the company has available for purposes of taxes and dividends, and also for re-investing in the company. Return on capital employed (ROCE) Operating profit (as above)/Capital Employed (equity** plus long term loans) Measures performance as a whole, taking into account all sources of funding. Considered a good measure of efficiency. Quick Ratio (Current Assets – Inventories)/Current Liabilities Similar to Current Ratio but with stocks removed (stocks are traditionally less liquid). As per Current Ratio. Can vary due to nature of inventories as some are more available for sale than other (i.e. butter v. Cheese). Current Ratio Current Assets/Current Liabilities Indication of business liquidity. Values greater than one indicate sufficient liquidity to meet current liabilities. Large businesses can operate at lower levels than smaller businesses. Gearing Long term loans/Capital Employed (equity** plus long term loans) Debtor Days Trade Receivables x 365/Turnover Measures how long, on average, it takes for the company to collect its debts. Generally should be lower than creditor days. If it is rising, raises questions about the company’s ability to collect money and may induce cash flow problems. Creditor Days Trade Payables x 365/ Cost of Sales Measures how long, on average, it takes for the company to pay its creditors. Generally should be higher than debtor days. Return on total assets Operating profit x 100/ Fixed assets + Current assets Measures how efficient the company is at generating revenues from its assets. If there is a large gap between Return on assets and Return on capital employed, this can indicate that assets are run down. Should be assessed in terms of how it has changed over time; should be increasing as assets should not be held if they do not generate revenue. New assets will cause ratio to fluctuate. * Not including distribution and administration costs **For co-operatives, equity is equivalent to member reserves 16 Description 17 18 While the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board, operating through its DairyCo division, seeks to ensure that the information contained within this document is accurate at the time of printing, no warranty is given in respect thereof and, to the maximum extent permitted by law, the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board accepts no liability for loss, damage or injury howsoever caused (including that caused by negligence) or suffered directly or indirectly in relation to information and opinions contained in or omitted from this document. Copyright, Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board 2012. 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