UK: Zetar trading “in line with expectations”

UK confectioner and snack maker Zetar has booked an increase in sales for the first six months of the year.

Trading for the first-half was “in line with management expectations”, the firm said in an interim statement today (16 November), and head of last year.

For the period ended 31 October, sales climbed 5.4% to GBP60.2m (US$96.6m).

Zetar’s confectionery division traded “strongly” during the period, due principally to good Christmas orders. However, the natural snacks division has had to contend with “ever increasing raw material costs”, which, despite customer price increases, the company said impacted margins in the period. Despite this, it expects margin recovery in the second half.

The group managed to reduce its net debt in the period by a further GBP26.6m.

Zetar will announce its results for the six months ended 31 October in January 2011.