Compass rides out food inflation worries

Going forward the business will off-set costs from higher food prices by using fewer suppliers, re-writing menus and passing on increased costs to customers: "We continue to see market inflation for our basket of goods of 4-5% (last reported in November). Although the increases occurring in dairy, rice and pasta prices have been at significantly higher rates, these account for only about 10% of the Group's spend on food. We are able to mitigate around one percentage point through leveraging our purchasing scale, as well as benefiting from menu planning, a focus on reducing waste, product and supplier rationalisation and client and consumer price increases."