Kerry Group revenues top €4bn in the first six months helped by price increases

File Picture of the Kerry Group in Charleville, Co Cork. Picture: Dan Linehan

Kerry Group has posted global revenues of over €4bn at the half-way stage, helped by price increases at its Taste & Nutrition division, as the food giant juggled higher input costs and passing on increased prices to its customers.

Group revenues increased to €4.1bn in the first six months of the year, up from €4bn a year earlier, but earnings were little changed at €518m as the group struggled to pass on increases in its costs.

Revenues at its Taste & Nutrition division grew 1.4% to €3.54bn in the period, with pricing up 5.4%.

In Dairy Ireland, revenues fell 2.5% to €675m and earnings fell 24% to €29m in the period.

"We delivered a good performance in the first half of the year recognising varying conditions across our markets,” chief executive Edmond Scanlon said in the half-year earnings statement.

"The demand environment remained resilient considering industry inflation and stocking dynamics,” he said.

Kerry Group said its overall earnings margin fell slightly to 12.6% as the “benefits from cost efficiency and portfolio developments were more than offset by the mathematical impact of passing through input cost inflation”.

Ahead of the earnings, shares in Kerry had gained 7% this year, but had fallen 12.5% from last summer, to value the company at just under €16bn.

The group continues to expand in Asia and South America.

Kerry Group announced on Tuesday night it has bought China-based Shanghai Greatang Orchard Food for an initial payment of €91m.

In May, it announced it bought Proexcar in Colombia for an initial payment of €40.4m.

It also completed the sale of its Sweets Ingredients business earlier this year.