One of Northern Ireland’s biggest food companies, Moy Park, has reported sales of more than £1 billion for the first time.

The poultry producer, which is owned by Brazilian food giant Marfrig, posted annual sales of £1.07 billion (€1.34 billion) for the year ended December 31st, a 16.4 per cent increase on the previous year.

Pretax profits came in at £4.8 million, while operating profits stood at £7.4 million.

Commenting on the profit figures yesterday, the company said that margins for the year had been impacted by “unprecedented levels of inflation” which had significantly increased feed and other raw material costs.

Chief executive Nigel Dunlop said Moy Park is working closely with customers to mitigate the impact of these costs on the business.“Increasing inflation costs is the greatest challenge we face,” he said. Moy Park employs 10,500 people across 13 separate processing facilities in Northern Ireland, England, France and Holland. The company supplies poultry products to major retailers and foodservice companies in Britain, Ireland and throughout continental Europe. Marfrig bought the poultry processor in 2008 in a deal worth £348 million.

Some £32 million in capital expenditure was invested in Moy Park last year, the company said yesterday, bringing to £106 million the total investment in the company over the last four years.