The world’s biggest food company Nestle has posted 2012 first quarter sales growth of 7.2 per cent, owing to strong demand in emerging markets.

Sales rose by 5.6 per cent to 21.4 billion Swiss francs (€17.8 billion) between January and March, the owner of brands such as KitKat and Haagen Dazs said.

Chief executive Paul Bulcke said in a statement that 2012 was shaping up to be the “challenging year” the food giant had anticipated.

“In many developed markets where consumer confidence is low, the trading environment is subdued while in most emerging markets, conditions remain dynamic and rich in growth opportunities,” said Mr Bulcke.

The company confirmed its full-year sales forecast of five to six per cent growth.

In the first three months of the year business grew by 13 per cent in emerging markets compared with 3.1 per cent in developed markets.

There was weak demand for frozen food products in North America, but pet food sales were strong there.

Stocks and seasonings brand Maggi sold strongly in Africa as did Nescafe products in China, Nestlé said, while KitKat performed well in Japan.

“The good growth in the first quarter together with the pricing effect for the rest of the year and a likely improved raw material environment in the second half, allows us to confirm our full-year outlook of delivering five to six per cent organic growth together with an improvement in the year-end margin and underlying earnings per share in constant currencies,” Nestle said.

The company last year posted a 9.5-billion-Swiss-franc profit, up 8.1 per cent from 2010.

At its recent annual general meeting shareholders elected chairman and chief executive of the AXA Group Henri de Castries to its board for a three-year term.