CJ CheilJedang said on Feb. 9 its full-year operating profit last year, excluding CJ Logistics results, fell 15.2 percent from a year earlier to 861.2 billion won. Revenue over the same period slipped 0.6 percent to 17.75 trillion won.

Overseas food emerged as a growth axis last year, but weaker demand for food in South Korea and volatility in the bio industry weighed on profitability, it said.

Fourth-quarter operating profit fell 15.8 percent from a year earlier to 181.3 billion won. Revenue rose 1.4 percent to 4.54 trillion won.

Full-year consolidated net profit and loss was a net loss of 417.0 billion won. The company said the result reflected non-operating losses from fourth-quarter valuations of tangible and intangible assets and described it as an “accounting loss” with no cash outflow.

Consolidated operating profit including CJ Logistics fell 15 percent from a year earlier to 1.23 trillion won, while revenue rose 0.4 percent to 27.34 trillion won.

Operating profit in the food business fell 15.3 percent from a year earlier to 525.5 billion won. Revenue rose 1.5 percent to 11.52 trillion won.

Overseas food revenue rose to a record high of 5.92 trillion won. It surpassed domestic revenue for the first time on an annual basis. The company said overseas expansion led by global strategic products, including dumplings, processed rice, kimchi, gim, and noodles, was effective. Fourth-quarter overseas food revenue also hit a quarterly record of 1.61 trillion won.

By contrast, fourth-quarter domestic food revenue fell 3.8 percent from a year earlier to 1.31 trillion won. The company said weak consumption and higher cost burdens overlapped.

Operating profit in the bio business was 203.4 billion won, while revenue was 3.96 trillion won, down 36.7 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively, from a year earlier. The company said a slowdown in the market for high-profit specialty amino acid products such as tryptophan, valine, arginine and histidine dealt a direct blow.

A CJ CheilJedang official said, “To maximize growth in the overseas food business, we will continue to expand into new global territories and lay the foundation for a renewed leap forward by improving the bio business structure and creating new demand.” The official added, “We will focus on improving profitability through management efficiency.”