Australia’s biggest food producer, Goodman Fielder, is working on a range of products to drive its earnings higher, amid fierce competition from rivals.

The maker of Helga’s bread and White Wings is increasing how much it spends on developing and marketing new products to help boost earnings, with chief executive Chris Delaney saying there were plans to launch spreads, baking mixes and flour products.

An insufficient range of new products in the spreads category hurt Goodman’s grocery earnings in Australia last financial year, according to The Australian.

Goodman’s products are being developed against a background of increased competition in the baking and grocery markets in Australia and New Zealand.

Supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths have stepped up in the bread market by selling private-label loaves for $1 or less, a steep discount to Helga’s, which is priced around $5 a loaf.

Goodman Fielder – which also owns the Wonder White, Country Life and Mighty Soft bread brands – suffered a net loss of $405.1 million in 2013/14 on the back of rising costs and price competition.