Profits jump by 65% at Newry-based Norbrook

Pretax profits at Norbrook, the Newry-headquartered veterinary pharmaceutical company, jumped by 65 per cent, or £14 million (€16.4 million), to £35.5 million in 2016.

The company’s latest results show total revenue in the 12-month period to last July also grew year on year, by 11 per cent to £239 million.

The family-owned company, founded in 1969 by the late Edward Haughey, recorded strong sales growth in both its farm animal product range and companion animal products – up 8 per cent and 15 per cent respectively.

Chief executive Liam Nagle said profits were driven by a combination of organic growth and the successful introduction of five new products, which delivered a 16 per cent sales boost in North America and 24 per cent in the EU.

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Exports now account for more than 80 per cent of Norbrook’s revenue, and sales in the US in the last financial year contributed £66 million to its turnover.

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Mr Nagle said Norbrook is monitoring both Brexit developments and the US scene. But it remains focused on its business strategy to be a “world class global provider of veterinary pharmaceuticals”.

Norbrook employs some 2,000 people and has manufacturing facilities across five sites: three in Newry, one in Monaghan and another in Nairobi, Kenya.

The company has invested heavily in its operations over the past financial year and earmarked a further £35 million for capital expenditure projects in the 2016/17 financial year.

Mr Nagle said Norbrook intends to upgrade and expand its manufacturing capability, pointing to a recently completed laboratory block on Newry’s Armagh Road and outlining plans to invest in similar facilities at its Stations Works site in the town.