The revenue of the world's biggest food company Nestle was pushed down by the rising value of the Swiss franc last year, the Swiss-based group said Thursday, February 16, M&C reported, citing DPA.

Revenue fell nearly 5 per cent to 83.6 billion francs (90.2 billion dollars), not taking into account the sale of eye medication producer Alcon.

Nestle's chief executive Paul Bulcke said revenue would have risen 7.5 per cent without the impact of the rise in the value of the Swiss franc.

Around half of this 7.5 per cent increase was due to higher sales volumes, while the other half came from higher prices.

Net profit rose 8.1 per cent to 9.5 billion francs, as Nestle paid less interest for debt and less taxes than in 2010.

Spending cuts in marketing and administration kept the operating profit stable at 12.5 billion francs.

But Bulcke struck a cautious tone. “It was a challenging year, and we do not expect 2012 to be any easier,” he said.