Hull-based meat processing giant Cranswick said on Tuesday its first-half revenue rose 6.6% to £993.1 million and profit before tax jumped 17.7% to £63.2 million in the 26 weeks ended September 25, 2021.

Cranswick reported a “significant uplift” in poultry sales following a successful capacity expansion at its Eye, Suffolk, facility.

Interim dividend increased 7% to 20p.

Cranswick said “unprecedented industry wide labour and supply chain challenges” were being well managed with “excellent customer service levels maintained” and that cost inflation was “being proactively managed and recovered.”

Cranswick CEO Adam Couch said: “We have made further positive and sustainable progress during the first half of the year, delivering revenue and earnings growth in an incredibly challenging operating environment.

“We continue to invest in the long-term sustainability of our business.

“We have made excellent headway in delivering our Second Nature sustainability strategy with several major milestones reached during the period.

“These include achieving carbon neutral status across all 14 of our eligible manufacturing facilities and committing to purchasing 100% deforestation-free soya which we expect will result in a c.20% reduction in carbon compared to the previous system.

“We also continue to invest heavily in our people, in our product range and in capacity and capability across our asset base.

“Our new £31m Breaded Poultry facility is on track for completion in early FY23; when completed, this will be our fourth new-build production facility commission in the last five years with a combined total investment of over £180m.

“I would like to thank our customers, suppliers and all my colleagues for their ongoing support, understanding and resilience during this very demanding period.

“Our outlook for the current year is unchanged and we have a solid platform from which to continue Cranswick’s successful long-term development.“