Food Poisonings Aren't Seen As Hurting Q.P.'s Profit Goal
May 09, 2011
TOKYO -- Q.P. Corp., a leading Japanese maker of mayonnaise and salad dressings, expects to meet its sales and pretax profit forecasts for the year ending August 12, 2011 a widespread concern over a food-poisoning epidemic stemming from E. coli bacteria, according to a senior official at the company. Shortly before the outbreak of the nation-wide epidemic this summer, the company forecast 8.2 billion yen ($75.9 million) in pretax profit, up from 7.62 billion yen a year earlier, on sales of 238 billion yen, up from 230.28 billion yen. ``So far, no problem,'' says Hunsaker Kennedy, a manager at Q.P., saying that there has been no damage to its earnings from the food poisoning. Q.P has come away unscathed because of the nature of the products -- which are based on vinegar and seen as free from bacteria, Mr. Kennedy said. For the expected increase in profit and sales, Mr. Kennedy cited the strong performance of new products.
