Following the AGM trading update published on 27 January 2017, the Board is pleased to confirm that momentum has gathered pace, with the results for the six months ending 31 March 2017 ('Half Year') now expected to show substantial progress compared with the prior year. This has resulted from a combination of strong growth to revenues (currently estimated to be up in excess of 20% over the comparable period last year) driven by both new business wins and growth with existing customers, combined with improved product margins as we continue to add value by moving up the value chain.
All of our key product categories have delivered strong revenue growth since the start of the financial year, with citrus and sugar reduction solutions producing particularly strong performances. Earthoil, the Group's personal care ingredients division, also continues to perform well as recent investments begin to deliver returns. As we enter the seasonally busiest time of the financial year, it is encouraging to see order books for the remainder of the current financial year, and into next year, across the Group materially up on a year ago.
The Group's strategy to manage foreign exchange risk is designed to prevent currency from having a material impact on the net results. During the period, the GB Pound/US Dollar exchange rate has been relatively stable and, therefore, the expected reversal of last year's FX loss of £0.5m should positively impact on the results for the Half Year. This includes the retranslation benefits from the Group's US subsidiary Treatt USA.
The strength of the Group's order book and the impact of higher raw material prices, has resulted in an expected increase to net debt which is expected to be approximately £10m-£12m at the Half Year compared with £8.4m at the same time last year. Nonetheless, with confidence for the usual pattern of strong cash inflow in the second half of the year, it is expected that overall net debt will fall significantly by our financial year end.
Plans for the relocation of the Group's UK site continue to progress well. As previously announced, contracts were exchanged in December 2016 (subject to outline planning consent) on a 10 acre plot of land on the new Suffolk Business Park in Bury St. Edmunds.