NESTLÉ UK boss Fiona Kendrick has hailed the company's growing export business, after the Government revealed that confectionery companies generated a record £1.1 billion for the UK economy last year.

Environment Secretary Elizabeth Truss said overseas consumers tucked into a record 150,000 tonnes of British confectionery last year, including 900 million Quality Street sweets.

A spokesman said 21 million York-made Nestlé Kit Kat Chunky bars were sold to overseas markets last year alone, including Germany, Italy and Canada. "Lined up end-to-end, they would cover the distance from York to Rome," he said.

Ms Kendrick said Nestlé UK exported close to £350 million worth of products every year to over 70 countries around the world, adding: "Our export business is growing, and despite our largest business being in Europe, we are seeing high growth in countries outside of the EU such as Japan, Brazil, Mexico, Australia and parts of the Middle East."