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Consumers have stocked up on tinned tomatoes, baked beans and packaged fruit in the wake of the Middle East conflict with Australian food manufacturer SPC Global Holdings (ASX: SPG) reporting a sharp jump in sales of the items amid supply chain concerns.
SPC Global says that weeks four and five of the conflict led to increased demand of between 12 and 20 per cent across major retailers for the packaged food products, prompting the company to secure additional raw materials and production volume to meet what it expects to be sustained incremental demand over the next 12 to 18 months.
Despite the geopolitical uncertainty, the company says it doesn’t believe the conflict will have a material impact on its FY26 financial results, pointing to its position as a domestic manufacturer with Australian-sourced inputs as a buffer against international supply disruption.
“As we move into the final quarter of the financial year, we are well positioned to deliver on our FY26 guidance while continuing to execute our growth strategy across domestic and international markets,” says SPC Global managing director Robert Iervasi in the company's third-quarter market update released today.
The conflict-driven demand boost sits alongside a broader operational turnaround at SPC, which reported that normalised EBITDA for the nine months to 31 March 2026 is tracking in line with FY26 guidance. That guidance implies a 25 per cent increase on the $30.3 million normalised EBITDA delivered in FY25.
Branded beverage sales rose 11 per cent year-on-year in the third quarter, with the Juice Lab Wellness Shots range growing almost 40 per cent in retail sales value compared to the prior corresponding period.
On the cost side, SPC cut cost of goods sold by 10.5 per cent and improved distribution costs by 11.6 per cent during the quarter, reflecting ongoing supply chain restructuring and the integration of synergies from its prior acquisitions.
The company expects more than $16 million in synergy benefits across FY26 and FY27, with the closure of its Mill Park facility on track for completion in the first quarter of FY27. That project is projected to deliver annualised savings of more than $8 million on capital expenditure of $3 million.
The group also says its international business continued its planned transition toward higher margin, higher quality revenue during the March quarter as major sales events held in Hong Kong in January and March delivered strong results in line with expectations.
"Our Q3 performance reinforces the visibility we have over our full year outlook," says Iervasi.
“The deliberate actions we have taken to reshape revenue, improve margins and strengthen the foundations of the business are delivering structural, long-term benefits.”
SPC reported net sales revenue of $171.5 million for the first half of FY26, with normalised EBITDA of $13 million. Net debt stood at $138.6 million and inventory at $108.9 million at the half-year mark.
SPC Global shares were trading 10pc higher at 32c at 2.17pm (AEST).
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