The food giant saw net revenues grow 11.5% to $13.2bn (€9.6bn) on the same quarter last year. Operating income was also up 11.8% helped by double digit growth in Europe.
Net revenues in Europe increased 16.1% to around $3bn (€2.1bn) and profit was also up 18%.
European growth
Kraft Foods executive vice president David A. Brearton gave his thoughts on the reasons behind strong performance in Europe.
“Top line growth reflected benefits from revenue synergies in Chocolate and Biscuits from both the LU and Cadbury acquisitions. This helped fuel nearly 70% growth of our chocobakery platform.”
European performance highlights included: Oreo biscuits which saw a 35% increase in revenues, Tassimo and Milka, which were both up 30%, and Belvita and Philadelphia, which saw a 20% rise.
Brearton said: “Ukraine continues to stand out, delivering growth of more than 35%, and Russia was up sharply due to gains in Chocolate and Biscuits. Power Brand grew more than 17% led by growth of nearly 50% for Oreo, Tuc and Club Social biscuits.”
“We also generated significant gains from innovation,” he continued.
“For example, across Continental Europe, we're successfully expanding into bite-sized chocolates. This is a result of our ability to factor that Cadbury Bytes to our Milka franchise,” he said.
Developing markets
The company also oversaw solid performance in developing markets.
Net revenues in developing markets grew by a staggering 45% led by performance in India, Russia, Brazil and China.
Growth for biscuits in developing markets was up 20% with Russia and China seeing growth of over 40%.
Brearton said the introduction of Oreo in India, as well as breakfast biscuits, including Belvita in the U.K. and Jubilee in Russia had boosted performance.
Meanwhile for chocolate, growth was strongest in India, where revenues were boosted by around 50%. Brazil, Argentina, Russia and Ukraine were also strong performers for Kraft in this category.
Results in gum and sweet confectionery were also very robust in developing markets, helped by Halls and Éclair brands and strong trade in India, China and Turkey.
Trident gum also achieved a record market share in Brazil as revenue for gum increased more than 15% in the South American state. This may in part be the result of new varieties of Trident gum introduced during the quarter which sell at lower price points and appeal to a wider range of consumers.
Kraft Foods CEO Irene Rosenfeld said: “Gum and candy is on a roll in developing markets. The challenge remains in Europe and North America where the Gum category is down in most markets. “