Good year for NWF

NWF GROUP, the Cheshire-based parent company of feed merchant NWF Agriculture, has announced pre-tax profits of £5.17m and an 18% rise in turnover.

The firm makes almost 300,000t of animal feedstuffs a year and controls about 10% of the blends market as well as seed and fertiliser distribution operations.

Turnover for the year ended May 31, 2004 grew to just under £200m, with pre-tax profits rising £120,000. Share dividends grew 10% to 16.3p.

Feed sales were up about £6m on 2003, but operating profits slipped £148,000. ]

This was mainly due to sharp increases in world commodity prices in the first half of the year, when the shortfall reached £300,000, said group chief executive Graham Scott.