SALES of low-fat ice cream brand Skinny Cow helped Richmond Foods serve up underlying profit increases of 8.4 per cent yesterday.

North Yorkshire-based ice cream manufacturer Richmond said the financial year had also got off to a good start with sales up ten per cent in the first seven weeks.

Over the past year, Richmond, which operates Europe's largest ice cream factory at Leeming Bar, near Northallerton, has seen profits rise to £14.4m in the year to October 2 - despite a 2.1 per cent fall in sales on the year.

Turnover was £3m down on 2004, but chief executive James Lambert said cost cuts and improved innovation had helped improve profits.

He said that Richmond, which makes Fab ice lollies and Yorkie and Smarties ice creams, was now positioned for organic growth.

Trading conditions in the second half were tough due to competition in supermarket promotions, combined with a weak impulse buy market.

Sales were lost through the merger of Safeway and Morrisons, which reduced Richmond's own-label market.

However, market share increased in the ice lolly sector, where Richmond's share grew from 64.8 per cent to 65.5 per cent.