On Conagra's Food and Ingredients Segment (35% of fiscal 2008 sales: Specialty potato, dehydrated vegetable, seasonings, blends, flavors, and milled grain products sold to foodservice and commercial channels worldwide) Conagra reports the following:
During the quarter, sales for the Food and Ingredientssegment were $1.2 billion, 32% ahead of last year. Sales for the milling operations grew as higher wheat costs were passed on as higher selling prices;Lamb Weston specialty potato and appetizer operations benefited from improved pricing and product mix as well as volume growth in export markets, the combination of which more than offset the impact of significant inflation. Sales results for dehydrated products and seasoning blends grew due to new initiatives with key customers. The recent acquisition of Watts Brothers Farms contributed approximately 2 points of sales growth to the overall segment, and the company notes that the integration of the business is going smoothly. Segment operating profit was $115 million for the quarter, 9% ahead of year-ago amounts, due to the strong sales results discussed above and a focus on efficiencies.
