Unilever 2002 Annual Report Download - page 29

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An important driver of success has been increasing support
from key opinion formers, such as health care professionals.
During the year, we complemented our alliances with national
heart associations with the worldwide sponsorship of the
World Heart Federation’s World Heart Day.
Including the impact of disposing of several oil businesses,
turnover fell 4% compared with 2001, whilst underlying sales
grew by over 2%. Operating margin BEIA was slightly lower
than in 2001 at 15.9%, after increased advertising and
promotions investment.
2001 results compared with 2000 at
current exchange rates
€million €million %
2001 2000 Change
Turnover 6 771 6 749 0%
Operating profit 817 839 (3)%
Group turnover 6 681 6 670 0%
Group operating profit 797 823 (3)%
2001 results compared with 2000 at
constant 2000 exchange rates
€million €million %
2001 2000 Change
Turnover 6 917 6 732 3%
Operating profit BEIA 1 095 921 19%
Exceptional items (269) (23)
Amortisation of goodwill
and intangibles
(9) (64)
Operating profit 817 834 (2)%
Operating margin 11.8% 12.4%
Operating margin BEIA 15.8% 13.7%
In 2001, consumer focused innovations made our spreads
turnover grow again and our total market share improved
by about 1%. Operating profit BEIA increased by 19%.
Our ability to satisfy consumer demand for healthy foods
was key to our success. Pro•activ, which includes ingredients
that can help to reduce levels of ‘bad’ cholesterol, showed
very impressive growth across Europe. Culinesse, a high-
performance, easy-to-use, liquid cooking product, was
successfully launched in 11 European countries.
In the US, an enterprising, cross-functional initiative that
looked at all aspects of margarine marketing captured the
imagination of consumers and boosted sales. I Can’t Believe
It’s Not Butter! grew particularly strongly.
Our European dairy spreads, marketed under Brunch,
Boursin and Crème Bonjour, continued to grow. Spreads in
most Eastern European countries recovered well, although
the Russian market remained difficult.
Unilever Annual Report & Accounts and Form 20-F 2002
26 Operating review by category – Foods
Spreads and cooking products
2002 results compared with 2001 at
current exchange rates
€million €million %
2002 2001 Change
Turnover 6 216 6 771 (8)%
Operating profit 812 817 (1)%
Group turnover 6 145 6 681 (8)%
Group operating profit 793 797 (1)%
2002 results compared with 2001 at
constant 2001 exchange rates
€million €million %
2002 2001 Change
Turnover 6 474 6 771 (4)%
Operating profit BEIA 1 029 1 086 (5)%
Exceptional items (183) (260)
Amortisation of goodwill
and intangibles (22) (9)
Operating profit 824 817 1%
Operating margin 12.7% 12.1%
Operating margin BEIA 15.9% 16.0%
In 2002, we built on our position as the market leader in
branded margarine and spreads. In this sector, as elsewhere,
the strength of our local roots and understanding of regional
tastes and cultures helped deliver growth.
Innovation was key to our strong performance. The sustained
success of pro•activ, an innovation that is proven to reduce
cholesterol, continued to drive rapid growth in our leading
spreads brands, Flora/Becel, which grew by 11.6%. Healthier,
more convenient cooking products, including Rama and
Culinesse and family oriented spreads, such as Blue Band,
all contributed towards our good performance.
Operating profit
BEIA € million
Tur nover
€ million
At current exchange rates
Operating profit
€ million
6 749
6 771
6 216
925
1 086
1 006
839
817
812
00
01
02
00
01
02
00
01
02