Nestle reports 3 percent sales drop but steady organic growth amid strong Swiss franc

Nestle, the world's biggest food and drink company, has reported a 3 percent drop in group sales for the first nine months of the year, impacted by weakness in currencies against the Swiss franc and other costs.

The Vevey, Switzerland-based company says it had sales of 66.2 billion francs, down from 68.4 in the same period a year ago, but that it had 4.5 percent organic sales growth, which does not reflect acquisitions and currency fluctuations.

CEO Paul Bulcke said Thursday its outlook for the full year remains 5 percent organic growth with improvement in margins, underlying earnings per share when measured in constant exchange rates and capital efficiency.

The results from the maker of Nescafe, Perrier, Jenny Craig and Haagen Dazs showed growth in all regions, particularly emerging markets.