Having spent years in the market doldrums, you cannot blame Fyffes now for sticking with a formula that has proven a winner for it already.

Having successfully got Worldoffruit.com up and running just as technology sector analysts were concluding that the future for tech stocks was in the very business-to-business service it provides, it has now teamed up with agri-business group Glanbia to do the same for the food ingredients business.

While Fyffes is looking to bring its expertise in setting up such online marketplaces to the deal in return for profits as much as share price growth, Glanbia will be glad of any return at a time when its share price and profits are both struggling to impress.