Swiss Water sees processing volume grow 23 per cent

Swiss Water Decaffeinated Coffee has reported a record growth of 23 per cent in processing volumes delivered to customers for the first quarter (Q1) of 2019. “In the first quarter of 2019, we continued to build positive momentum as the volumes we shipped to roasters, importers, specialty, and commercial accounts all showed strong year-over-year growth once again,” Swiss Water President and CEO Frank Dennis says.  “The 23 per cent increase in total processing volumes for the first three months of the year had a very positive impact on all of our financial metrics.” The green coffee decaffeinator reported revenue of US$24.2 million, a 14 per cent increase over the same period the prior year. Quarterly gross profit of US$3.5 million was up by US$0.7 million, or 25 per cent, resulting in a margin of 15 per cent, an increase of 1.2 per cent over the 2018 result. For the rest of 2019, Swiss Water expects to continue a strong year-over-year increase in annual processing volumes. “With strong financial results and volume growth across all of our geographic markets and customer categories in Q1, the year 2019 is off to a great start for Swiss Water,” Dennis says. “During Q1 2019, we opened a new European sales office to help drive our penetration of the [European Union], which is the world’s largest market for decaf coffee. The increased bench strength we’ve added to our sales and marketing team in the United States is enabling us to target specific customer groups and to win an ever-increasing share of the North American market for premium decaffeinated coffee.” Swiss Water intends to open an additional decaffeination facility, which is located in Delta, British Colombia, in the fourth quarter of 2019. Initially, the facility will house one new production line, with plans for expansion in the future.