Lifeway Foods, a Illinois-based supplier of cultured dairy products, has registered net income of $2m or $0.13 per diluted share for the second quarter ended 30 June 2012, compared to $0.3m or $0.02 per diluted share in the same period in 2011.

Total consolidated net sales increased by 13% to $20.6m during the three-month period ended 30 June 2012 from $18.2m during the same three-month period in 2011.

Gross sales increased from $19.9m in the second quarter of 2011 to $22.7m in Q2 2012, an increase of 14%.

Increase in gross sales was primarily due to increased sales and awareness of the company’s flagship line, Kefir, as well as ProBugs Organic Kefir for kids and BioKefir.

Gross profit for the second quarter of 2012 increased by 46% to $8m, compared to $5.5m in the second quarter of the prior year.

Total operating income increased to $3.1m during the second quarter of 2012 from $0.7m during the same period in 2011, primarily due to increase in gross profit.

Lifeway Foods CEO Julie Smolyansky said the company’s higher net sales combined with the benefit from lower milk prices and tightly controlled expenses enabled them to report a quarterly earnings increase of 650%, the strongest in the company’s history.