Veggie meat cuts income of Monde Nissin in Jan-June

By VG Cabuag @Villygc

MONDE Nissin Corp. said its attributable core income fell 14 percent to P3.5 billion in the first half from the previous year’s P4.08 billion mainly on the continuing losses of its meat alternative business.

The maker of Lucky Me! Noodles and Skyflakes said it also incurred higher marketing expenses for its Asia Pacific branded food and beverage (APAC BFB) business and foreign exchange losses.

“The APAC BFB business saw top line growth moderate during the second quarter as volume growth slowed down in all categories, most noticeably in noodles. This reflects what we have observed over the past few months and what appears to be an overall macro trend of more modest consumption across many food and beverage categories,” Henry Soesanto, the company’s CEO, said.

“However, despite this slowdown, we saw good improvement in our gross margin compared to the previous quarter as well as year-over-year which we expect will continue as the year progresses. Looking ahead, we expect the third quarter to show better yearon-year growth, being helped by last year’s lower base.”

Soesanto said the restructuring of its veggie meat business has been completed and that it is on