Strong sales for IFF in Asia, Europe and Latin America
sales performance across Asia, Latin America and Europe for its
flavors division.
For full year results, net income was recorded as increasing by $247m - up 9 percent from last year. IFF has two business arms - flavors and fragrances. Earnings per share were reported at 58 cents in the 2007 fourth quarter, up from last year's 53 cents. Chairman and chief executive officer Robert Amen said: "I am pleased with our 2007 financial performance, which reflects strong top line and earnings per share growth. "We met or exceeded our financial goals and delivered our second consecutive year of increased earnings. "Our full-year financial results demonstrate that our strategies are working. Specifically, we increased sales, grew market share and built a stronger organization. While we still have opportunities for improvement, our 2007 accomplishments provide a sound foundation for continued growth in sales and earnings per share in 2008 and beyond." Flavors delivered strong sales performance across all regions - most notably in Latin America, Greater Asia and Europe. Fourth quarter 2007 For fourth quarter results, sales across the board were up to $553m. This is an increase of up by 8 percent from the same period the previous year. Net income was down one million in a year to $47m. Sales for 2007 quarter benefited from the generally weaker US dollar, the firm said. A 16 percent rise in sales in the flavors business was driven primarily by "new wins" and increased volume in Europe and the emerging markets in Asia and Latin America. In flavors, sales in fourth quarter were up just one percent year on year in North America, compared to 20 percent in Europe and 42 per cent in Latin America. Net sales for flavor division were $253m with operating profit of $41.7m. Fragrance reported $300m sales with profit of $36.8m for the three months up to December 31. Total fragrance sales were driven by a 4 percent increase in ingredients and a 3 percent increase in demand for its functional products, the firm said today. Ingredient sales were strongest in Asia as a result of a strong demand for compounds and production shifting to the region, the firm said.
