In its statement the company said it expected the encouraging total sales growth figure as a reflection of continued growth in demand for fresh prepared foods in the UK as well as on continental Europe. In the UK, sales of fresh prepared foods are expected to be more than five per cent ahead of last year.

Geest attributes this accelerating sales growth to new business gains as well as market growth and increased consumption of prepared salads year on year.

The picture is brighter on the Continent with a 15 per cent sales growth figure expected, come the announcement of interim results on September 11. This figure is before the additional effect of Geest's acquisition of French prepared salads company Crudi.

The whole-head salads business at Geest is expecting a sales increase of 10 per cent in the first half.

'Underlying operating profit is expected to show clear growth in the first half, albeit not as high as sales growth due to the continuing, although diminishing, losses in pasta and the acquisition of Crudi,' said the statement. The highly competitive supermarket retail arena is also likely to be a factor as suppliers to the major multiples find the going increasingly tough.

The company is on track to reach £50million on capital expenditure this year to reflect the growing demand for fresh prepared foods in the UK and the rest of Europe.

'Geest is trading in line with the board's expectations in the current year and expects to benefit further next year from continued growth in consumer demand, increased capital efficiency and strong customer and market positions,' the statement concluded.