Swiss food company Nestlé has reported a 5.4% increase in its net sales for the first quarter of 2013 to CHF21.94bn ($23.5bn), compared with CHF20.82bn ($22.34bn) for the same period in 2012.
The organic sales, including 2.3% real internal growth and 2% pricing, increased 4.3%.
Nestlé CEO Paul Bulcke said the company expects some volatility throughout 2013 but reconfirms its expectation to deliver its commitments for the full year: top line, bottom line and capital efficiency.
"Our global presence, unrivalled category diversity and our proven ability to bring innovative products and services to our consumers allow us to deliver in the short term while at the same time creating the right conditions for continued success over the long term," Bulcke added.
The company registered growth in all regions worldwide in Q1: 5.3% organic growth in the Americas, 1.5% in Europe and 4.4% in Asia, Oceania and Africa.
Nestlé stated that there had been a decline in sales in its frozen food business in Europe, partially due to the horse-meat scandal.
For the full-year 2013, Nestlé expects to deliver organic growth between 5% and 6% together with an improved trading operating profit margin and underlying earnings per share in constant currency, as well as improvement in capital efficiency.
