The profit is only Maple Leaf’s second in the past 11 quarters, but was slightly smaller than expected. Shares fell nearly seven per cent in Toronto trading to $20.95, as the company delayed reaching a key earnings target.

The company rolled out a program in 2010 to boost earnings by shutting some plants and modernizing others.

“We are making meaningful progress on eliminating inefficiencies driven by the ramp-up of our new facilities, though not at the pace we had hoped for,” said chief executive Michael McCain.

Maple Leaf disappointed by delaying to 2016 its target of increasing EBITDA as a per centage of revenue to 10 per cent, said Canaccord Genuity analyst Derek Dley in a note.

The profitability measure amounted to 7.1 per cent during the quarter, up from the previous quarter but below expectations, he said.

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