The Irish subsidiary of the Compass Group, the world’s biggest catering company, delivered a 53 per cent increase in operating profits last year as sales grew at a faster pace than production and running costs.
Compass Catering Services Ireland, which has the catering contracts for the Aviva Stadium, various horse racing venues and across the business, industry and education sectors, reported €3 million of operating profits in its financial year to the end of September 2024, according to newly-filed accounts with the Companies Registration Office (CRO).
Sales rose by 4 per cent to €130.4 million, while cost of sales and administration costs edged 3.1 per cent higher to €127.4 million. Compass Catering Services Ireland employed an average of 1,744 staff last year, 1,620 of whom were directly involved in providing catering services across the State.
The sales increase included a contribution from Glanmore Foods, the Dublin-based school meals provider that it acquired in late 2023 for some €54.8 million.
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It bought Glanmore, which provides contract catering services to about 450 primary and secondary schools throughout the State, from a family-owned holding company called CNB Investments.
Compass Catering Services Ireland launched a lawsuit in April against CNB Investments, claiming it was misled about the financial state of affairs of the business. The allegations are being denied. The case is up for mention in the Commercial Court on November 3rd.
The latest accounts for Compass Catering Services Ireland do not include any impairment charge against the assets of Glanmore Foods.
The enlarged group controls between 20 and 25 per cent of the Irish contract catering sector, according to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC). That’s based off data for 2022 that was used in its assessment of the deal, before it was given clearance by the watchdog. It has a similar share of catering services to the education sector, according to the figures.
“We have a strong, balanced and sustainable growth model across the group,” Compass Catering Services Ireland management, led by managing director Deirdre O’Neill, said in the report.
“Our strong cash generation across the group continues to fuel investment in our business through capex and attractive M&A (mergers and acquisitions). The business is in great shape operationally and financially and well positioned for a more focused growth phase.”
The wider Compass Group, which is based in the UK and listed on the FTSE 100, reported $3 billion (€2.57 billion) of operating profits on $42 billion or revenues in the year to last September.
