Irish-Swiss food group Aryzta has reported further improvement in the revenue trend of the business in July.
The company said it expects revenue to be down 18% in the month to date 25 July, compared to a 23% decline in June and a 49% drop in April.
As most economies are re-emerging from lockdown, the company said there is concern about a second wave of restrictions in some countries.
The maker of McDonald's burger buns and Cuisine de France bread, said while retail sales are gradually improving, food service is still significantly down.
In North America, it said sales are improving but are still experiencing volatility as some States and major cities reinstate restrictions, with revenue down 15%.
In the rest of world, the monthly revenue evolution is down 20%. Similar to all other regions, it said food service remains negatively impacted.
The company said they that management has taken action to protect and maximise liquidity since the consequences of Covid-19 became visible in mid-March.
This included pausing productions in bakeries to reduce capacity in line with demand, furloughing headcount, availing of government relief initiatives, suspending capital expenditure and eliminating discretionary cost to the maximum extent possible.
The company said while restrictions are loosening in markets and more localised regulations appear, it has adjusted production upward using adapted shift patterns.
It said in Europe, only one bakery is still fully paused compared to three as of 30 April, while 69 out of 83 lines are currently operational.
In North America, only one bakery is still fully paused compared to five as of 30 April, while 63 out of 70 lines are currently operational.
The company said that overall, 14% of staff are furloughed compared to 30% in April.
Last month Aryzta pushed back its planned extraordinary general meeting after receiving unsolicited takeover approaches by investors.
