Russian dairy Wimm-Bill-Dann realised increased sales for 2005, after raising prices to pass on raw milk costs.

The company said it held off pressure on profit margins in 2005 by raising prices 6.8% in its beverage division, almost 18% in baby food and 12.5% in dairy.
Despite price pressures over the past two years, including plastic packaging and energy increases, Wimm-Bill-Dann’s regional strategy has progressed. Its subsidiary Ufamolagroprom OJSC signed a deal to buy Pervouralsk City Dairy Plant in the Sverdlovsk region, taking the group’s total of manufacturing plants to 30. The firm’s new baby food division also grew rapidly last year, aided by better performances from higher priced products, such as drinkable yogurts and curd desserts.