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Global consumer goods leader Nestlé has declared it will cut sixteen thousand jobs over the next two years, as the recently appointed chief executive Philipp Navratil advances a strategy to focus on products offering the “highest potential returns”.

The Swiss company needs to “evolve at a quicker pace” to stay aligned with a evolving marketplace and implement a “performance mindset” that rejects ceding ground to competitors, the executive stated.

He took over from ex-chief executive the previous leader, who was terminated in last fall.

The job cuts were revealed on Thursday as Nestlé shared better sales figures for the initial three quarters of the current year, with higher revenue across its primary segments, encompassing beverages and confectionery.

Globally dominant packaged food and drink firm, Nestlé manages numerous brands, among them Nescafé, KitKat and Maggi.

The company intends to get rid of twelve thousand professional jobs in addition to four thousand other roles across the board within the next two years, it stated officially.

These job cuts will cut costs by the food giant about one billion Swiss francs per annum as within an continuous efficiency drive, it said.

Nestlé's share price increased seven and a half percent following its quarterly update and restructuring news were made public.

The CEO said: “We are building a organizational ethos that embraces a achievement-oriented approach, that does not accept competitive setbacks, and where success is recognized... The marketplace is evolving, and Nestlé needs to change faster.”

The restructuring would include “difficult yet essential choices to cut staff numbers,” he said.

Equity analyst a financial commentator said the announcement signalled that Mr Navratil seeks to “increase openness to sectors that were formerly less clear in the company's efficiency strategy.”

The workforce reductions, she said, appear to be an initiative to “recalibrate projections and restore shareholder trust through measurable actions.”

The former CEO was dismissed by the company in the beginning of the ninth month after an investigation into internal complaints that he failed to report a romantic relationship with a immediate staff member.

Its departing chairman the ex-chairman accelerated his leaving schedule and stepped down in the identical period.

Media stated at the time that investors blamed Mr Bulcke for the firm's continuing challenges.

In the prior year, an study revealed Nestlé baby food products marketed in low- and middle-income countries included unhealthily high levels of added sugars.

The study, by a Swiss NGO and the International Baby Food Action Network, found that in several situations, the equivalent goods marketed in wealthy countries had no extra sugars.

• Nestlé owns hundreds of labels worldwide.
• Job cuts will affect sixteen thousand workers throughout the next two years.
• Cost reductions are projected to reach one billion Swiss francs annually.
• Stock value rose 7.5% following the news.