FTN Cocoa Processors’ loss deepens to N843.39m, survival threatened

FTN Cocoa Processors Plc has said its loss after tax for the financial year 2020 deepened to N843.39 million from N801.26 million in the previous year.

The company’s loss before tax widened to N842.81 million last year from N797.19 million in 2019 as its revenue plunged to N235.21 million from N672.19 million.

Its total assets fell slightly to N4.63 billion as of Dec. 31, 2020 from N4.65 billion at the end of 2019 while total liabilities rose by 17 percent to N6.02 billion from N5.15 billion, according to its audited financial statements.

FTN Cocoa Processors said it sustained a loss last year “as a result of lack of adequate working capital in order to produce at optimal level coupled with heavy finance cost”.

According to the annual report, the company incurred an accumulated loss of N4.88 billion as at the year ended Dec.31, 2020, with a negative shareholders fund of N1.39 billion.

“This condition gives rise to a material uncertainty which may cast doubt on the company’s ability to continue as a going concern,” it said.

The principal activities of the company are the processing of cocoa beans and palm kernel into cocoa cake, liquor, butter, powder, palm kernel oil and palm kernel cake.

According to the company, cocoa cake, liquor and butter are exported while cocoa powder, palm kernel oil and palm kernel cakes are marketed locally to manufacturing companies.