Dole’s income
up 17%

All of the companies'
key businesses did well

By Russ Lynch
Star-Bulletin

All of Dole Food Co.'s core businesses produced added profits in the second quarter of this year.

The result was a 17 percent climb in net profit for the company compared with its earnings in the second quarter of last year, Dole said today.

The profit for the latest period was $82.1 million, or $1.35 a share, compared with $70.4 million, or $1.17 a share, in the 1997 period.

Second-quarter revenues of $1.16 billion were up 4.5 percent from $1.11 billion in the year-earlier period.

Adding to the company's performance was the acquisition during the latest quarter of the Sunburst and Floramerica group of flower companies that will serve as a platform for Dole's expansion into that industry, said David H. Murdock, Dole chairman and chief executive officer.

The flower business will fit well with Dole's current line of perishable products, Murdock said. Dole is the world's largest grower and marketer of fresh fruit and vegetables.

Murdock said the second-quarter earnings increase was achieved despite the adverse impact of the dollar's higher strength against the currencies of several countries where Dole does business.

Westlake Village, Calif.-based Dole had its origins in Hawaii's sugar and pineapple industries last century and still has agricultural operations in the islands.