Israel's Strauss says Sabra sales have recovered after recall

TEL AVIV, June 15 (Reuters) - Israeli foodmaker Strauss Group said on Thursday its subsidiary Sabra Dipping Co has seen its sales restored to levels before it issued a recall of its spreads in November.

Sabra, a 50-50 joint venture with PepsiCo Inc, has a 60 percent share of the hummus market in the United States.

The recall and regaining of sales will have a one-time impact of an additional $5 million on the company's pretax profit, Strauss, a maker of snacks, fresh foods and coffee, said in a statement.

Operating profit had been reduced by $5 million in the first quarter due to the recall over concerns of listeria bacteria.

Sabra's gross sales so far in the second quarter have stabilised at higher levels compared with the first quarter while market share is also stabilizing at a similar level to before the recall.

"Gross profit is beginning to show improvement in the second quarter compared to the first quarter mainly due to plant efficiencies and package mix," the company said. (Reporting by Tova Cohen; Editing by Ari Rabinovitch)