A view of Bibigo Mandu and home meal replacement products on display at a U.S. large-scale shopping mall. (Photo: CJ Cheiljedang)

CJ Cheiljedang announced its business performance for the first quarter of this year on May 10. In a consolidated financial statement, the company said it posted 1.178.1 trillion won in sales, a 6 percent increase over the same period a year ago, and 385.1 billion won, a 39.6 percent year-on-year jump.

If the business performance of CJ Logistics is excluded, CJ Cheiljedang chalked up 3.671.1 trillion won in revenue, a 5.4 percent rise, and 342.3 billion won in operating profit, a 55.5 percent surge. Prior restricting reform led to enhanced profitability and a surge in operating profit.

The food business saw sales rise 2 percent to 2.306.4 trillion won. Domestic food sales surged 7 percent on the back of double-digit growth of mainstay products such as Bibigo and Hetbahn products and more than 20 percent jump in online sales.

Overseas sales stood at 1.026 trillion won. Swan’s Company accounted for 688 billion won, 67 percent of the total. The achievement was owed to the market share of Bibigo Mandu, which was on a steady rise in U.S. distribution channels, and a rise in online sales in China.

Intensified efforts to improve profitability and cost efficiency paid off: the whole of the food business saw its operating profit swell 51.7 percent to 176.4 billion won.

The bio business saw sales surge 14.7 percent to 777.3 billion won. Operating profit jumped 50.7 percent to 77 billion won. The business sector has established itself as one of the company’s value-added businesses with the ratio of operating profit out of sales standing at about 10 percent.

CJ Cheiljedang cited as the secrets of the good business performance the strengthening of market leadership through global production infrastructure in regions such as Asia, North America and South America, leading low-protein trends in the feed and livestock markets through differentiated technology marketing activities and the expanding of high-profit products such as tryptophan, valine and arginine.

CJ Cheiljedang is expanding the “white bio” business, based on world-class R&D competitiveness. The bio business chalked up 777.3 billion won in sales, a 14.7 percent year-on-year surge and 77 billion won in operating profit, a 50.7 percent year-on-year jump on the back of the leadership of the global green bio market.

CJ Feed & Care, the feed & livestock business, posted 587.4 billion won, an 8.1 percent year-on-year increase, on the back of the strengthening of advanced disinfection capabilities (Biosecurity) designed to cope with livestock disease and logged 88.9 billion won thanks to the booming Vietnamese market.

Despite continued global uncertainties, caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, CJ Cheiljedang created new opportunities in the global business on top of quantitative growth and substantial growth.

As CJ Cheiljedang secured financial resources for strategic investments by earning more than 1 trillion won in operating profit last year, the company is now striving to explore and nurture new growth drivers.

CJ Cheiljedang said the company plans to make preparations for the future through innovative products and strategic R&D investments, and accelerate innovative growth to establish itself as a full-fledged world-class company.