New Zealand's Fonterra logs 23% rise in half-year profit

March 21 (Reuters) - New Zealand's Fonterra Co-operative Group said on Thursday its first-half profit rose 23%, helped by higher margins and sales volumes in food service and consumer channels, as well as lower associated costs in certain key markets.

The world's biggest dairy exporter reported profit after tax of NZ$674 million ($409.86 million) for the six months ended Dec. 31, compared with NZ$546 million a year earlier.

($1 = 1.6445 New Zealand dollars) (Reporting by Sneha Kumar and Megha Rani in Bengaluru)