The Swiss food and beverage giant has reported that the return of café and hospitality trade has offset the impact of inflationary pressures and supply chain constraints in the first six months of 2022
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Sales of Nestlé Professional and Starbucks out-of-home products grew at a double-digit rate in Europe | Photo credit: Nestlé
Nestlé has reported sales growth of 9.2% for the first half of 2022 to reach CHF 45.6bn ($47.5bn), compared to CHF 41.7bn ($43.6bn) for the same period in 2021.
Reporting its half year results for the period ending 30 June 2022, Nestlé noted a strong recovery in its out-of-home channels following the pandemic, alongside growth across its Nescafé, Starbucks and Nespresso brands, with overall coffee sales growing at a high single-digit rate.
Sales of Nestlé Professional and Starbucks out-of-home products grew at a double-digit rate in Europe and North America. The Swiss company also noted strong performances from ready-to-drink Nescafé beverages in South East Asia and Nescafé Dolce Gusto and an expanding portfolio of Starbucks products in South America.
Nestlé’s coffee pod division Nespresso achieved modest growth of 2.6% globally, achieving sales of CHF 3.2bn ($3.3bn) compared to CHF 3.1bn ($3.2bn) for the same period in 2021.
Coffee contributed more than $25bn, or approximately 27%, of Nestlé’s sales in 2021.
Supply chain disruptions and inflationary pressures have led the Swiss food and beverage giant to increase prices for some Nestlé products, predominantly in its food divisions.
“We limited the impact of unprecedented inflationary pressures and supply chain constraints on our margin development through disciplined cost control and operational efficiencies. At the same time, investments behind capital expenditure, digitalisation and sustainability increased significantly,” said Mark Schneider, CEO, Nestlé.
In July 2022, Nestlé introduced the Starbucks At Home instant coffee range and the We Proudly Serve Starbucks Coffee programme in Vietnam.
In the same month the company opened a $340m coffee factory in Mexico, its second in the country, making the Latin American country the Swiss giant's largest coffee supplier globally.