Arrow Group, which is one of the largest meat processors in the State, grew its pretax profits by 14 per cent to more than €28 million last year, accounts filed with the Companies Registration Office show.
The group is owned by the Queally family, which also own shares in Dawn Meats.
Founded by brothers John and Peter Queally, Arrow operates, among other things, cold storage businesses and a dog food processing plant, Irish Dog Foods, in Naas, Co Kildare.
The accounts for Arrow Group for the year ended December 2024 show it made a net profit of €23.2 million over the 12-month period, which was up from €20.3 million the year before.
RM Block
The group, which is family-owned, paid a dividend of €1.8 million, which was unchanged from the year before.
Group turnover was down more than €11 million from €759.1 million to €748 million, while the cost of sales was down from €655 million to €642.2 million.
In a note accompanying the accounts, the group said it “continues to face challenges” from the current global economic situation caused by the conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, as well as the threat of tariffs and the uncertainty they bring.
The group said it has not been impacted directly, but that there has been inflationary price increases in raw materials and other overheads.
It said it manages energy costs through forward contracts and day ahead rates to mitigate against sudden increases in price for electricity and gas.
“The business is well placed to manage these risks through various mechanisms such as diversification, price recovery and other means as necessary,” it said.
“Working Capital requirements have decreased during the current year. The group systematically reviews these requirements to ensure they are managed effectively. The group are confident of the ongoing support of our bankers.”
Arrow described 2024 as a “positive trading year”. Its performance was attributed to “continuing activity” with existing customers and the onboarding of new customers along with new product lines across all key markets.
This was offset somewhat by varied protein, transport and commodity price fluctuation on world markets, but the group said it continues to benefit from “positive customer sentiment” and maintenance of market share.
The average monthly number of people employed by the group was 2,217, which was down from 2,238. It spent €107.6 million on staff costs, which was up from €99.7 million in 2023.
Arrow said it will continue its focus on the control of costs, working capital optimisation and broadening its customer base across all regions.
