Meatpacker and hide processor Tyson Foods has reported its financial results for the fourth quarter and full 2023 fiscal year, writes ILM.

The company brought in sales of US$13.35 billion in the fourth quarter, down by 2.8% year-on-year. Sales for beef alone were US$5 billion in the period, down by 3.5%, while by volume they fell by 6.7%, but the average price was up by 10.2%.

The company achieved adjusted operating income of US$236 million in the quarter, down by 71% from the previous year, while operating income for beef was a loss of US$323 million.

For the full 2023 fiscal year, sales were down by 0.8% year-on-year to US$52.9 billion while beef was down 2.66% to US$19.33 billion with a volume decline of 3.1% and an average price up by just 0.4%.

Adjusted operating income for the full financial year was down by 79% to US$933 million, with a loss of US$91 million for beef alone.

Looking forward, the USDA indicates that domestic protein production should decline slightly in fiscal 2023, while beef will drop by around 5% year-on-year. Tyson expects an operating loss of US$400 million for beef at worst, and at best will break even.

President and CEO Donnie King said: “While economic headwinds persist, we are moving in the right direction and managing what we can control. The decisions we have taken have made us more operationally efficient and aided a second quarter of sequential improvement in adjusted operating income. The strategy and leadership team we have in place will allow us to take advantage of the long-term opportunities in front of us and drive shareholder value.”