Kiotech margins feed profits

Kiotech, a manufacturer of agricultural feed additives, boosted profits to £990,000 in the first half of 2011.The company said it had refocused the business on higher margin products and had successfully passed on raw material price increases to customers. Earnings per share increased 12% to 4.03p after increased margins - up from 26% to 31% - made up for a fall in like-for-like sales from £11.08m to £9.36m.Chairman Richard Rose said the group was well positioned to continue its success in the second half of the year and was evaluating a number of acquisition opportunities. The firm said its China subsidiary had started to break-even, enabling future growth opportunities to be self-financing.However, it added that success in China "will not be achieved overnight, it requires persistence and patience".