There's nothing more satisfying than having a good moan. But, judging by the responses to this year's Food Manufacture survey, the nation's food and drink manufacturers have a lot to whinge about: faced with unprecedented rises in raw materials prices, oil prices heading for the stratosphere and customers frustratingly reluctant to accept price increases. Indeed, just 35 of those surveyed claimed they had successfully managed to pass on price increases to customers, while a whopping 89 said cost increases in raw materials represented a major threat to profitability. Confidence levels also appear to have dropped since last year's survey, with just 46 expecting profit margins to improve over the next 12 months compared with 66 last year, and only 53 claiming to feel more positive about the future of their businesses this year compared with 70 in the 2007 survey.
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