Fresh Del Monte earnings slip on banana market

NEW YORK, Feb 27 (Reuters) - Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. (FDP.N) said on Tuesday its quarterly loss doubled on high input costs, low banana prices and weak sales in its prepared foods business, but the results were better than analysts had expected.

The seller of fresh and prepared fruits and vegetables posted a net loss of $59.9 million, or 4 cents per share, excluding asset impairment and restructuring charges. In the same quarter a year ago, the company reported a $3.5 million, or 2 cent-per-share loss.

Analysts, on average, had been expecting the company to post a loss of 29 cents per share, excluding exceptional items, according to Reuters Estimates.

"We faced higher input costs, a difficult banana market in Europe, and lingering issues in our prepared foods business," Chief Executive Mohammad Abu-Ghazaleh said in a statement.

Net sales for the quarter that ended Dec. 29, 2006, fell 3 percent to $737.6 million. The company said the decrease was a result of continued rationalization in its other fresh produce business segment.

((Reporting by Anupreeta Das, editing by Maureen Bavdek; Reuters Messaging: anupreeta.das.reuters.com@reuters.net; +1 646 223 6172))

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