Dairy Crest faces £4m bad debt after Quadra Foods goes into administration

Dairy Crest has slipped back after news that one of its customers has gone into administration, leaving the group with a £4m bad debt. The company said it would lose the money after Quadra Foods - which makes Dairystik - had called in administrators, but it was looking at options to reduce the amount involved. It said it would treat any loss as an exceptional item, but it would not have any impact on its dividend policy and would have no material effect on its borrowings. Dairy Crest's shares have edged down 0.3p to 330.5p, and analyst Charles Hall at Peel Hunt said: The loss will obviously be seen as negative to sentiment in the short term, but should have minimal effect long term.