Tine, the Norwegian dairy co-op, has announced plans to cut €100m in costs and up to 400 jobs after it reported a slump in half year profits.

For the first six months of 2019, Tine recorded operating profits of NOK931m (€92m). This is down 27% year-on-year as operating profit margins narrowed from 8.3% in the first half of 2018 to 5.9% for the first half of this year.

Despite the fall in profits, Tine recorded half-year sales of NOK15.7bn (€1.6bn), which was up 3% year on year. However, this increase was largely driven by the acquisition of Lotito Foods in the US.

Tine blamed the fall in half year profits on a combination of factors, including a rise in dairy imports to Norway, the loss of export markets for its range of Jarlsberg cheeses and much lower sales of ice cream this summer.

As a result of the fall in profits, Tine CEO Gunnar Hovland announced a €100m cost cutting plan in a bid to revitalise profit margins by next year.