Pre-tax profit for the three months ended June 30 were $3.7 million, shareholders were told at the annual meeting in early August.
Good livestock flows, an extended operating season with optimum plant use and improving margins combined to produce the good results, chief executive Todd Grave said.
It was the best first-quarter earnings in 10 years.
The figures compared with a full-year pre-tax profit of $3.74m for the year ended March 31. That included a one-off charge for a writedown of just over $390,000 on a property to be sold but even allowing for that the operating improvement is significant.
It is made more impressive by the fact that the 2017 profit was the best annual result since 2011 and allowed the Southland meat processor to resume dividends after a two-year break.
Stock flows into the Morton Mains plants were strong because of good on-farm growth conditions, Grave said.
The company’s marketing team was able to maximise carcase value in the market, improving margins despite lamb schedule levels being near record highs.
Like any company Blue Sky is prone to ups and downs and is working hard to mitigate the effects of down-periods on trading returns.
Grave has pushed Blue Sky into producing higher yields from each carcase and selling more lamb as higher-value chilled product.
The company is now planning a brand-based, value-add product.
Chairman Scott O’Donnell told shareholders the company is up to the big challenge of a strategy that will take time and investment to achieve.
