Food and beverage firm Monde Nissin Corp. reported a 3.5 percent dip in attributable core net income to ₱7.2 billion in the first nine months of year, hurt by continued losses in its meat alternative business and higher costs for edible oils.

The company noted, however, that attributable core profit improved by 4.6 percent to ₱2.5 billion in the third quarter of this year.

According to Monde Nissin, the gain was primarily driven by higher gross profit and lower operating costs in the meat alternative business, despite headwinds from edible oils in the Asia-Pacific Branded Food and Beverage (APAC BFB) segment.

The improvement was also supported by a foreign exchange gain, compared to a foreign exchange loss in the same period last year.

Reported net income for the first nine months increased by 9.6 percent to ₱6.7 billion.

In the third quarter, reported net income rose by 13.4 percent to ₱2.3 billion, partially offset by a non-cash loss of ₱285 million on the fair value of the Meat Alternative guaranty asset.

Consolidated revenue for the first nine months inched up by 3.5 percent to ₱63.3 billion, while third quarter revenues grew by 3.8 percent year-on-year to ₱21.8 billion.

“Our APAC BFB business delivered modest topline growth in the third quarter, supported by volume growth in biscuits and other categories,” Monde Nissin Chief Executive Officer Henry Soesanto, said.

He noted that the firm’s domestic business had a strong start to the final quarter: “Our strong start to October, with record domestic sales, is encouraging; however, we remain cautious given the uncertainties ahead in the fourth quarter.”

Soesanto admitted the pressure on margins but remains optimistic about recovery: “While higher edible oil costs continue to put pressure on gross margins, we are beginning to see the benefits of our pricing adjustments and cost-saving initiatives, such as reformulation. We expect these efforts to drive gradual gross margin recovery in the succeeding quarters, though full year gross margin is still expected to be lower than last year.”

Regarding the meat alternative segment, he said, “We are encouraged by the continued easing of year-on-year declines and the significant gross margin improvement this quarter, which expanded by over 500 basis points year-on-year.”

Soesanto affirmed the company's financial guidance: “We remain on track to achieve our topline and EBITDA guidance for the full year. While category conditions remain challenging, the improvement in EBITDA demonstrates that our initiatives are making steady progress. We will continue to focus on driving efficiency and supporting a gradual recovery as we navigate the current market environment.”