Irish food company Greencore today reported revenue of £285.8 million for its convenience food division for the 13 weeks to the end of the December, a 2.5 per cent increase on the same period in 2011.

In a trading statement issued before its AGM in Dublin later today, the company said the growth in revenue reflected both the contribution from acquisitions but also the impact of business exited, notably in the former Uniq chilled desserts activity.

During the period, the group announced that it had completed the disposal of its chilled desserts facility in Minsterley to the Müller Dairy UK Group.

The company, which supplies desserts and sandwiches to supermarkets and coffee chains, said trading conditions in the UK remained challenging, adding growth rates across all categories had moved down in line with the overall market.

In the US, the company said revenues had more than doubled reflecting the acquisitions of Marketfare Foods and Schau.The acquisitions have performed well in the period with underlying double digit revenue growth, it said.

The company also reported it had started supplying to Starbucks in the greater Boston area.

Greencore's ingredients and property division, which makes up about 6 per cent of its revenues, saw revenue of £13.1 million, 11.6  per cent lower than the same time last year.

In its outlook for the coming year, the company said market conditions continued to be challenging, particularly in the core UK market which showed little or no volume growth.

“We expect this to remain the case for the foreseeable future,” it added