Farmfoods, the frozen-food chain founded in Aberdeen more than 60 years ago, has reported a slump in sales in 2015.
Turnover plummeted to £694.4million, from nearly £812million the year before.
Pre-tax profits fell slightly during the latest period to £21.1million, from £21.7million previously.
The figures emerged in accounts released by Companies House yesterday.
Farmfoods, which started life as a meat processor in Aberdeen in 1955 and is now based in Cumbernauld, near Glasgow, could not be contacted and it traditionally does not comment on annual results.
But its accounts referred to a “competitive” environment continuing to impact on the business.
The success of budget retail giants Aldi and Lidl in recent years has forced the major supermarkets to cut prices in order to attract bargain conscious shoppers, all of which makes trading conditions tough for everyone else.
Farmfoods employs around 4,300 people at more than 300 stores throughout the UK, including four in Aberdeen, two in Inverness and one each in Inverurie, Peterhead, Fraserburgh, Stonehaven, Elgin, Invergordon, Fort William and Oban.
The company’s biggest shareholder is Eric Herd, who said in a strategic report with the accounts that Farmfoods invested more than £3.4million in freehold property last year.
Farmfoods’ best-paid director last year – likely to be Mr Herd, 59 – earned £450,000 in pay and pension contributions, the same as in 2014.
