A number of major food manufacturing and consumer goods companies are taking centre stage at the Consumer Analyst Group of New York (CAGNY) conference this week, which is being held in Boca Raton, Florida.
The four-day event will see investors hearing from the likes of Mondelēz, Nestlé, Unilever, PepsiCo, Kellogg and Hain Celestial.
General Mills was first to present on Tuesday, with CEO Jeff Harmening reiterating the company's strategy for delivering value in the face of shifting consumer food values, changing competition across categories, and disruption within retail channels.
"The biggest change we are making at General Mills is to begin operating as a global company," said Harmening. "We remain laser-focused on our 'consumer first' strategy. By providing consumers what they want, we will create growth in this dynamic environment."
The chief executive also indicated that the company will continue to develop its portfolio through mergers and acquisitions.
Meanwhile, the group's chief financial officer, Don Mulligan, provided an update on full-year fiscal 2018 targets.
Organic net sales are expected to be in line with last year, and the company continues to see broad-based improvement in topline momentum, driven by brands such as Häagen-Dazs ice cream and Old El Paso.
'Forward-Looking'
Later in the day, attention turned to Dirk Van de Put, the newly-appointed CEO of snack-food giant Mondelēz International.
Van de Put, who succeeded long-time chief executive Irene Rosenfeld at the end of last year, outlined several areas of the company's strategic focus.
"More than ever, the consumer needs to be at the centre of what we do," he said.
"Today's consumers eat differently, shop differently and seek different experiences. Since consumers are changing fast, we have to be more nimble, innovative and forward-looking than ever before."
Mondelēz's chief financial officer, Brian Gladden, then reaffirmed the company's 2018 outlook, with organic net revenue expected to grow by 1-2%.
"We've built a core competency in cost management, and this will benefit us moving forward," Gladden said. "Cost efficiencies will continue to be a fundamental part of our playbook, and we're confident there are additional opportunities to improve margin performance and fund growth initiatives."
However, the confectionery giant recorded revenues of $25.89 billion in 2017, representing a drop of 0.1% compared to the previous year, with sales in North America falling by 2.3%.
Looking ahead, Kellogg is set to present at CAGNY today. The conference continues until 23 February.
© 2018 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Sarah Harford. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
