Carbery group - the manufacturer of cheese, flavours and value-added ingredients owned by Bandon, Barryroe, Drinagh and Lisavaird co-operatives - reported revenue of €700.8m and operating profit of €26.4m for 2022.

While turnover was substantially higher than previous years, operating profit was in line with the very steady level it has held for the past five years.

Some €10m was added to the group’s milk stability fund in 2022, bringing the fund to support milk prices during adverse price movement periods to €19.86m by the end of December.

This was achieved despite a 2% drop in milk volume to 598 million litres.

Strong year

Carbery’s dairy business had a very strong year, driven by soaring market prices amid strong global demand. It produced 63,000t of cheese during the year, with 12,000t of that being mozzarella.

Sports and infant nutrition continued to be growth areas for the group, along with an increased focus on the clinical nutrition sector.

The taste division, Carbery’s non-dairy business, saw further expansion as the integration of Innova, which was acquired in 2021, with Synergy was completed.

Investments in R&D facilities and innovation programmes are showing a return, while the end of COVID allowed for a major increase in customer visits.