Faced with higher price, consumer brand name exchange

The canned food industry faces difficulties to maintain profit margins this year, due to more expensive dollar-the u.s. currency accumulates high of 45.5% compared to the real. Companies heard by the value can't go over the final price the entire elevation of imported food and packaging costs, quoted in dollars.
"We tried a reset of 8%, even with the dollar to $ 3.20, but we can't. With the higher price, the exchange of consumer brand, "says Antonio Carlos Tadiotti, President of Choice. According to the Executive, the crisis on the Brazilian economy has already affected the consumption of the classes C and d.
And even the classes A and B to resist the price adjustments. For the year, the Favorite designs a growth in revenues of 12% to 15%, but the profitability will be completely undermined, "stresses Tadiotti. The Choice has invested between $ 7 million and $ 8 million this year in the automation of its production lines, as part of the strategy to reduce costs.
The canner La Violetera has reduced its headcount from 480 to 400 people in factories and also invested in automation. "We made investments of r $ 2 million to $ 3 million in automation to improve productivity. But, even so, the company won't be able to keep profit margins from last year ", says the General Director Felix Boeing Jr.
According to the Executive, foods such as capers, carrots and artichokes had increases of 20% to 40% in import prices due to the devaluation of the real against the euro and the dollar. La Violetera reduced prices on 15%, when the dollar reached r $ 3.30, and plans to make a further increase of 15% at the end of the year. "The high dollar was very strong, hard to absorb. As a result, all the rows of canned highest value-added are suffering, "he says.
The exception was the segment of olives-main source of revenue of the company. The import cost was stable this year, due to a crop sick in Argentina. La Violetera closed the first half with 12% growth in volume of sales and 15% in revenue. For the year closed, the company estimates a growth of 7% in volume, with deterioration in demand, and of 10% in revenue, reaching $ 300 million.
The projected growth of 10 Food Hemmer% to 12% in revenue in 2015. "We're still growing, by the entry into other regions and markets and the creation of products," says sales manager Amanda Nunes Rosa. If real not win forla against the dollar, the Brazilian will backdate in his habit of consumption, says Rosa. "With the recessive market, hardly buy a caponata of aubergines at r $ 25", exemplifies.
The reduced prices between Hemmer 8% and 20% in the year, depending on the product. The company also expanded its distribution lines to the Northeast and Midwest and began to export. In 30 days, starts sales for Uruguay, Colombia and Peru.
In Brazil, consumers are skittish to price increases, but La Violetera, Hemmer and Choice want to try new adjustments to retailers in the fourth quarter, when sales tend to be more excited about the holidays.
According to data from the Brazilian Association of food industries (Abia), canned vegetables and juices had nominal increase of sales of 6.97% from January to July, compared to the same period in 2014. Discounted inflation, sales fall 1.19% year to date.
In the canned fish segment, the industry managed to maintain prices thanks to more hearty harvests of sardines and tuna in the world. But stable prices haven't stimulated the consumer to make a broad replacement of other proteins by pickled fish.
The canned fish segment, which moved $ 2.8 billion last year, according to Euromonitor International, works with prospects of growth of 3% in sales volume and revenue this year-well below the 9.2% inflation expected in the country this year, according to the Focus Bulletin, the Central Bank.
The Camil, owner of the coconut tree and fisherman, marks came to grow above 10% in 2014, but this year slowed down and had an increment of sales similar to the market. According to data from Nielsen consulting, sales of canned seafood in the country rose by 3% until July. In the case of Camil, the increase was 3.3% in revenue and 3.1% in volume in the period. "It's a satisfactory result in the current economic scenario of retraction," says Andrea Martins, marketing director of Camil Alimentos, the largest company in the sector of preserved in the country, according to Euromonitor, accounting for 39.9% of the market of fish ...
The Executive believes in an increased frequency of pickled fish consumption in the coming months, as the economic crisis deepens, and the stable prices of sardines and tunas make these proteins more attractive to Brazilians in relation to other types of meat.
Calvo group, owner of the brand Gomes da Costa, is the second largest company in the ranking of Euromonitor, with 38.7% stake. The Preserved Bald provides a 7% growth in revenue this year, reaching R $ 1.28 billion-sales volume would be 4%.
Louis Manglano, Director of marketing for Gomes da Costa, says that sales of fish increased 4% until July, compared to a year earlier, but there is no increase in demand in the coming months. "Last year, sales of canned seafood grew 20%. The basis for comparison is already too great, "he says.
The Preserved Calvo reinforced in 2015 the offer of pickled vegetables (olives, hearts of Palm, artichokes and asparagus) as a strategy to increase revenue with higher value-added products. "Are items intended primarily for classes A and B which have the budget less affected in time of crisis. Our sales of artichoke, for example, grew 120 percent this year ", compares Manglano. The Executive provides quintuple sales of vegetables preserved until 2020.
The Heinz, third largest canning company, was contacted by the value, but had no spokesman available.