Seneca Foods’ net sales slip in latest fiscal quarter

FAIRPORT, N.Y. — Seneca Foods Corp. (NASDAQ: SENEA, SENEB) recently reported that its net sales for the quarter ending Sept. 30 fell more than 7 percent to $407.5 million from $439.8 million in the same period a year earlier.

The company — a Finger Lakes–based provider of packaged fruits and vegetables, with facilities across the U.S., including Geneva and Penn Yan — said the decline was primarily due to lower sales volumes, partially offset by higher selling prices. 

Seneca Foods’ gross margin as a percentage of net sales was 14.3 percent for the three months ended Sept. 30, an improvement from a gross margin of 9.5 percent in the comparable three-month period a year ago.

Seneca Foods says it is one of North America’s leading providers of packaged fruits and vegetables. Its products are primarily sourced from more than 1,400 American farms and are distributed to about 60 countries. The firm’s corporate office is in Fairport, near Rochester. Seneca says it holds a large share of the market for retail private label, food service, restaurant chains, international, contracting packaging, industrial, chips, and cherry products. Products are also sold under the brands of Libby’s, Aunt Nellie’s, Green Valley, CherryMan, READ, and Seneca.