Hilton Food trading in line, shares sizzle

16th Jul 2009 08:27

Shares in meatpacker Hilton Food sizzled over 6% after it said trading for the 28 weeks ended 12 July 2009 has been in line with company expectations.In the UK, where the market has been challenging, the group benefited from an increased volume of barbecue products. In Ireland the bacon, sausage and gammon project continued to perform well, it added. Meanwhile trading in Central Europe was strong as customer volumes grew. Hilton said it has started to export limited volumes from its facility in Poland to Latvia, for an existing customer.Overall turnover growth was underpinned by solid volume performance and some positive impact from foreign currency translation, the group said in a statement. It added that raw material prices are now more stable in some of its markets after last year's rises.Chief executive Robert Watson commented: "We have continued growing the business despite the challenging economic conditions. This has been achieved through new product initiatives, and by growth in new markets, such as Central Europe. Our modern facilities also enable us to support growth in our core markets."