Food producing stocks were performing well on Wednesday with FTSE 100 consumer products giant Unilever the standout performer after impressing with record sales in 2012.

Turnover increased by 10.5% to €51.3bn, the first time that it has topped the €50bn mark. Underlying sales growth of 6.9% was strengthened by an impressive 11.4% rise in emerging markets, which now represent 55% of total turnover.

Unilever owns a wide range of food brands, including Marmite, Flora and Knorr, but also is known for its home care and personal care products like Persil, Dove and Vaseline.

Shares were up 3.18% at 2,529p, having hit 2,534p earlier in the day, an all-time high. The company's market capitalisation is now nearly £72bn.

"The Q4 & FY12 numbers have beaten consensus expectations on the key metrics of organic growth and core margins (core earnings per share were in line)," said Investec analyst Martin Deboo.

"This caps a strong year for ULVR and we see the trends as supportive of our 'buy' case," he said.

Meanwhile, orange plantation operator Asian Citrus Holding, which has a market capitalisation of around £350m, was rebounding after disappointing the market yesterday with its first-half results.

The firm said that it expects core net profit in the six months to December 31st to decline following a squeeze on winter orange production.

AIM-listed cake, bread and gluten-free bakery goods maker Finsbury Foods was up 1.2% after reporting a slight increase in first-half sales.

The company, which is valued on the market at around £27m, also said that its outlook for the second half remains unchanged as its Chief Executive John Duffy labelled growth as "resilient".


Top performing sectors so far today
Food Producers & Processors 6,827.78 +2.53%
Oil Equipment, Services & Distribution 25,856.99 +1.15%
Beverages 13,735.40 +1.07%
Food & Drug Retailers 4,260.04 +0.90%
Mobile Telecommunications 3,829.44 +0.83%

Bottom performing sectors so far today
Electricity 8,788.18 -2.94%
Financial Services 5,925.74 -0.83%
Construction & Materials 3,580.13 -0.81%
Travel & Leisure 5,506.95 -0.81%
Forestry & Paper 7,744.61 -0.76%

BC

Related share prices
Unilever (ULVR) share price
Finsbury Food Group (FIF) share price
Asian Citrus Holding (ACHL) share price