³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ

Moy Park, the Northern Ireland-based poultry producer, saw pre-tax profits fall by 60% in 2021 as it faced "unprecedented cost increases."

The company made £30m on sales of £1.6bn compared to a 2020 profit of £76m on sales of £1.5bn.

The firm said the whole poultry sector was facing higher feed, energy and labour costs.

This was partially mitigated last year by the reopening of the food service sector after the pandemic, it said.

Moy Park is one of Europe's largest poultry firms employing almost 10,000 people across its operations in Northern Ireland, England, France and the Netherlands.

The business is ultimately owned by the Brazilian multinational JBS.

Last week official data showed that soaring food costs pushed UK inflation into double digits for the first time since 1982.

Inflation hit 10.1% in the 12 months to July, up from 9.4% in June, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.

Food and non-alcoholic drinks were the largest contributor to rising prices in July, according to the ONS.

The price of bread, cereals, milk, cheese and eggs rose the fastest, while the cost of vegetables, meat and chocolate were also higher.

Food price inflation is a global phenomenon which has been intensified by Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Russia and Ukraine are some of the biggest producers in agriculture and food globally.

Russia also produces huge amounts of nutrients, like potash and phosphate - key ingredients in fertilisers, which enable plants and crops to grow.

Natural gas, which had become a lot more expensive even before the war, is needed to produce ammonia, the key ingredient in nitrogen fertiliser.