Tuna giant John West makes first loss in 14 years after reversing pricing decision

For the first time in over a decade, canned tuna giant John Westy has fallen into the red. The Liverpool-headquartered business has reported a pre-tax loss of £6.7m for 2023, having reported a profit of £2m in 2022.

It follows a failed decision to pass on price rises to its customers - which has now been reveresed.

Newly-filed accounts with Companies House have also revealed that the firm's turnover rose from £128.2m to £134.5m in 2023. The last time John West posted a pre-tax loss was the £1.1m it fell to in the nine months to the end of 2010.

The fish firm's 2022 turnover was the lowest it had recorded since 1999 after the food brand's attempt to raise prices to combat the rise in global commodity costs backfired.

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During its latest financial year, the company said it took the decision not to pass on all the inflation-linked price rises to its customers.

A statement signed off by the board said: "Turnover increased by 4.9 per cent linked to recovering some of the global commodity increases seen across 2023. Gross profit decreased greater than revenue when compared to 2022, decreasing to 9.1 per cent (2022: 17.6 per cent) of sales.

"The decrease in gross profit was linked to the strategic decision not to pass all the inflation on linked to the global commodity increases to protect customer numbers and market share."

The business was founded in 1857 and produces canned salmon and tuna, as well as mackerel, sardine, herring, brisling, anchovies and shellfish. It is currently owned by Thai Union Group of Thailand after being acquired in 2010.