Plant Impact breaks even and expects substantial year ahead

4th Sep 2015 07:45

(ShareCast News) - Plant Impact, the agricultural crop improvement specialist, said it now expects to break even after trading profitably through the last full year.After a transformational year to the end of July, the AIM-listed company predicted growth for the 2016 financial year on the back of substantial sales in Brazil of its soybean crop efficiency product, Veritas.Sales of Veritas, which is sold in Brazil by German multinational Bayer, were encouraging and helped group revenue expand 80% to £4.5m, of which £1.4m came in the fourth quarter, itself a 75% increase.Although sales in Northern Europe were hit by Russia's boycott of European produce, Plant Impact said overall for the year its net profit after tax was expected to be £0.1m, reversing the previous year's £0.7m loss.Chief executive John Brubaker said it had been a transformational year for the group and said 2016 was "an important year for multiple growth programmes"."The directors have a positive sales outlook for the 2016 financial year."This is predicated on forecasts of "substantial growth" in Brazil for Veritas as sales are expanded across the whole country after a successful test-marketing season, with firm orders already received for most of its expected sales in the 2015/16 Brazilian soybean season.Northern Europe, the smaller region from a current sales perspective, is expected to see "modest" growth, Middle-Eastern sales are expected to continue to expand, and a first commercial year of Banzai, a new product to improve cocoa yield that will be marketed in West Africa by Arysta LifeScience, beginning with Cameroon and the Ivory Coast.Management also plan to significantly expand commercial and research and development programmes, using some of the £7.6m cash balances.