Hilton Food Group, the Northern Ireland-based meat processor, has reported operating profits of £17.3m for the first half of 2016, a 26% increase compared with the same period last year. Operating margins widened 30 basis points in the first half of the year, thanks to favourable currency movements and strong volume growth.

Despite a very competitive retail market environment in recent years, Hilton has been able to continue to grow its business through sustained sales volume growth. In the first half of 2016, volumes increased by 4.5% to more than 133,700t.

This helped to boost turnover for the period by more than 9% to £631.9m, while pre-tax profits increased 27% to £16.7m. Over the six-month period, Hilton reduced its net debt position entirely with cash in the bank of £21.6m at the end of July.

Robert Watson, chief executive of Hilton Food Group, said the profitability of business had benefitted from favourable exchange rate movements in the first half of the year. This is likely a reference to the depreciation seen in the value of sterling in the months leading up to the Brexit vote, as well as the plunge in value of the UK currency in the immediate aftermath of the vote.

Interestingly, Watson and Hilton make no reference to Brexit in these half-year results and the long-term impact the vote may have on the business. About two thirds of Hilton’s sales are achieved in markets outside the UK, so any decline in the value of sterling is likely to boost the company’s competitiveness in those markets.

In saying that, Hilton is highly dependent on a very small number of customers with 98% of sales in 2015 made to just four retailers (Tesco, Albert Heijn, Coop Denmark and ICA Gruppen). Tesco alone accounts for almost 50% of the company’s annual sales.