Swiss food giant Nestlé has posted organic sales growth of 4.5% in the first half of the year, driven by 1.7% internal growth and 2.8% pricing.
Nestlé revealed today (13 August) that it posted total sales of CHF 42.8 billion in the period, which were impacted by the effect of foreign exchange rates (-5.8%).
In Europe, the Middle East and North Africa, the group saw growth of 3.4%, posting double that (6.6%) in the Americas.
“The first half results were in line with our expectations, broad-based across categories and geographies, solid even in difficult circumstances, and consistent with our strong performance over time,” said Paul Bulcke, Nestlé chief executive.
For the full year, Nestlé said it was eyeing organic growth of around 5%.
Commenting on its performance Lianne van den Bos, Food Analyst at Euromonitor International, said “Nestlé is facing the same headwinds as in 2014, but the group as a whole has still managed to deliver steady growth given the market conditions and will continue to lead global packaged food with a strong 3.4% share in 2014.
“It will take serious investment and competitive edge for the number two player Mondelez to close the gap with Nestlé. […] Yet with the company refocusing its investment on nutrition and healthcare, who is to say that it won’t?”
© 2015 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. To subscribe to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, click here.
