Dutch organic food group Wessanen said it made “significant progress” in the first-quarter, recording increases in earnings and sales.

In the three months to the end of March, net profit amounted to EUR5.1m (US$6.6m) compared to EUR1.7m last year. Wessanen attributed this to increased gross profit, results from its restructuring and a “healthy” performance across a number of its businesses.

EBIT in the period reached EUR9.3m from EUR2.9m last year, while sales edged up 1.1% to EUR172.5m.

“Most of our core categories have continued to grow whilst the implementation of our transformational programme ‘Wessanen 2015’ runs smoothly,” said CEO Piet Hein Merckens. “This will lead us in becoming a more profitable company, being more focused on its core activities, more agile and more efficient.”