RESTRUCTURING costs, higher fuel and raw materials prices and tough trading conditions were the ingredients that hit profits and sales at Liverpool-based bakery, ingredients and sugar group The Real Good Food Company.

The Crown Street firm delivered a less-than-appetising 5.4% fall in turnover of £218.7m for the year to December 31.

And, after £1.96m of exceptional costs, including restructuring, the previous £3.45m pre-tax profit was reduced to a £421,000 loss.

However, chairman Pieter Totte is convinced that the group’s reorganisation and low interest rate charges will see an improvement in its financial performance.

In January this year, the company merged its sugar division, Napier Brown Foods, with its bakery ingredients business Renshaw – both holders of the Royal Warrant – to form Renshawnapier, based in Liverpool.

This is anticipated to achieve annual savings of at least £800,000.

And the continuing trend for home baking during the ongoing credit crunch is expected to see sales rise even more than the 9.2% improvement to £35m which the bakery ingredients division achieved last year. Hailing the newly-reorganised structure, chief executive Stephen Heslop said: “Renshawnapier is the UK’s largest independent non-refining distributor of sugar, supplying customers throughout the industrial, retail and food service industry.

“It is a supplier of premium quality ingredients to the food industry and a leading manufacturer of marzipans, ready-to-roll icings, baking chocolate and jam for major cake manufacturers, high street bakers and retailers.”

Chairman Pieter Totte added: “While trading in this new division at the start of the year has been below that of the prior year this, to a degree, was anticipated due to the current economic climate and, indeed, the division has been trading in line with our expectations for 2009, which is encouraging.”

And he went on to predict: “The board anticipates that the benefits of its restructuring programme and lower interest rate charges during this financial year should be reflected in an improved financial performance over the prior year.”