Pilgrim’s Mexico finished the 2020 fiscal year on a strong note, said Fabio Sandri, president and CEO of Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation.
Pilgrim’s Pride, which has operations in the United States, Mexico and Europe, on February 21 released its financial results for fiscal year 2020, which ended on December 27, 2020.
Pilgrim’s Mexico saw net sales of $392.5 million in the fourth quarter, up from the $343.6 million during the fourth quarter of fiscal year 2019. The quarter’s results reflected a strong turnaround, as its full year net sales slipped from $1.39 billion to 1.32 billion.
Meanwhile in the U.S., Pilgrim’s net sales slid from 1.9 billion to $1.88 billion on a year-over-year basis for the quarter, and from $7.6 billion to $7.5 billion for the full year. In Europe, Pilgrim’s net sales increased in the fourth quarter, going from 815.4 million in 2019 to $849.2 million, while decreasing from 2.38 billion for the full year in 2019 to $3.27 billion in 2020.
“After a very challenging first half of 2020, our Mexican operations have continued to rebound strongly and deliver great results in the second half, including Q4, to finish the year similar to prior years. We adopted the operations well to generate strong performance despite volumes that were slightly lower than the same period in 2019, but higher than Q3. More normalized economic activities, continued good supply demand balance in the market, and our increased share of low-commodity products, few imported chicken and a very good operational performance all contribute to the strength,” said Sandri.
“We expect overall demand to continue to be solid, while we remain agile and we are continuing to adapt their facilities by shifting production to those channels that are experiencing better relative demand. Demand for Prepared Foods in Mexico also improved with volumes recovery, and we are currently experiencing better demand than pre-COVID. We remain committed in the long-term growth and demand prospects in Mexico. We are continuing to invest in our Del Dia and premium Pilgrim's brand, both in the prepared and fresh markets as well as seeking more market share in the modern channel, which will bring more stable margins to our operations.”
Sandri said he believes the economy in Mexico is starting to improve. As trade between the United States and Mexico increases and the U.S. economy improves, so will the Mexican economy.
