Farsons Group has reported a profit after tax of €3.95 million on a turnover of €41 million for the six months ending July 31, marginally better than the same period last year.

“Despite the highly competitive environment, the beverage business in particular continued to deliver a resilient performance, responding well to market forces,” Farsons Group chief executive Norman Aquilina said.

While innovation and exports contributed towards these results, targeted export growth remained a challenging objective, particularly in view of the recent turmoil in north Africa, he added.

The franchise food business has been steady, while the group’s food importation arm is undergoing a number of changes aimed at improving the business performance.

Construction works on its €27 million, state-of-the-art beer packaging facility are progressing on schedule and the targeted completion date is April 2016.

The board of directors recommended an interim dividend of €1 million, similar to last year, and equivalent to €0.0333 per share.