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Swelling demand for mayonnaise, Cornetto's and fabric cleaning products helped Unilever to report bolstering sales in the first quarter.
The consumer goods producer saw underlying sales growth of 4.7 per cent from January to March though currency movements caused overall turnover to fall modestly to ?12.3billion.
It announced a share buyback programme of up to ?3billion on the back of this impressive sales performance, which it said would start next month and be completed by the end of 2021.
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Expansion was driven by a boom in food for at-home consumption like ice cream, double-digit sales advances in China and India, and its Hellman's brand receiving an advertising boost during the US Super Bowl game.
The Anglo-Dutch firm said sales in India were sustained by purchases of haircare products and the reopening of schools and offices pushing demand higher for fabric cleaning and fabric enhancing goods.
Its Latin American market also grew well thanks to rising sales of the anti-dandruff shampoo Savital, while the popularity of nutrition brand Olly and Prestige brands helped increase underlying sales in North America by 4.3 per cent.
Lockdown restrictions in countries like the UK and Germany sent trade declining in Europe though as consumers bought fewer personal care products and goods from its food solutions business.
Beauty and personal care was the weakest performing division of Unilever, with underlying sales growing by just 2.3 per cent to ?5billion against a 9.8 per cent upswing in foods and refreshment and 5.9 per cent growth in home care.
The Ben & Jerry's owner forecasts sales growth this year of 3 to 5 per cent, though it warned that the 'operating environment remains volatile' due to the Covid-19 pandemic and lockdown restrictions,
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It noted the increasing costs the virus is imposing on freight and commodities and the devastating surge in infections and deaths currently sweeping India, though it claimed it was not seeing any material impact on its business from the latter.
Chief executive Alan Jope hailed the company's 'good start to the year,' adding that its' focus on operational excellence, innovation, and purposeful brands is continuing to strengthen competitiveness.'
The Scottish-born boss said Unilever's planned demerger of its tea business was 'on track' and that it was making 'good progress' in forming its new beauty and personal care brands business Elida Beauty.
Elida beauty will consist of brands predominantly sold in Europe and North America, including Q-Tips, Caress, Tigi, Timotei, Impulse and MonSavon, which together generated revenues of around ?600million in 2020, according to the company.
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The moves are part of Jope's plan to jump-start growth, which has lagged peers in recent years, partly because of an outsized focus on emerging markets that have performed unevenly.
In February, Jope stated Unilever would focus more on high growth categories such as plant-based foods, beauty products and nutritional supplements and prioritise growing existing businesses rather than make acquisitions.
Russ Mould, investment director at online share platform AJ Bell, remarked: 'Slow and steady wins the race, so the adage goes, and Unilever certainly fits the bill.
Mould admits the 3 to 5 per cent growth target 'won't excite a lot of people, given how there are technology companies adding one or even two zeros to the end of those figures for their annual sales progression.'
But he said its 'resilience and stamina are often forgotten strengths. A year or two ago, the market was questioning whether Unilever could grow at all, yet now it is beating its sales growth target.'
Shares in Unilever were up by 3.4 per cent to £42.11 at 12:15pm today.
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