Olam International has booked a jump in first-half sales, which were up by almost one quarter on strong growth from the Singapore group’s food business.

The company said sales in the six-month period rose 24.3% to S$9.6bn (US$7.72bn), on an increase in sales volumes of 71.9%.

Gains were driven by an 83.2% in volume growth at the group’s food unit, with “net contribution” from the business up 24.2%.

Group profit after tax and minority interests rose 21.3% to S$197.3m. Excluding exceptional items, such as the sale and lease back of almond orchards in California, profit growth stood at 10.1%, while earnings per share rose 17.8%.