Tate & Lyle (LON:TATE) warned that profits are likely to be flat this year, as it reported an 80% drop in pre-tax profit for 2014.
The sugar and sweetener maker described 2014 as a “very challenging year”, an observation underlined by a £46mln drop in profit from its Splenda brand.
In the year ended 31 March 2015, the company, which has issued three profit warnings this year, recorded lower sales, profits and earnings.
On a constant currency basis sales were down 11% to £2.7bn from £3.1bn with profit before tax suffering a 28% fall to £224m.
Tate & Lyle blamed supply chain problems, competition in the ‘sugar-replacement’ market, and lower commodity prices for its underperformance.
Javed Ahmed, chief executive, said: ‘It has been a very challenging year for the group, but with the necessary actions underway we are firmly focused on improving our performance.”