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Operator
Thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Nomad Foods First Quarter 2022 Earnings Conference Call. (Operator Instructions) the conference is being recorded. (Operator Instructions) I would now like to turn the conference over to Anthony Bucalo, Head of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.
Anthony Bucalo
Hello, and welcome to the Nomad Foods First Quarter 2022 Earnings Call. I am Anthony Bucalo, Head of Investor Relations, and I am joined on the call by Stefan Descheemaeker, our CEO; and Samy Zekhout, our CFO.
Before we begin, I would like to draw your attention to the disclaimer on Slide 2 of our presentation. This conference call may include certain forward-looking statements that are based on our view of the company's prospects, expectations and intentions at this time. Actual results may differ due to risks and uncertainties, which are discussed in our press release, our filings with the SEC and this slide in our investor presentation, which includes cautionary language.
We will also discuss non-IFRS financial measures during the call today. These non-IFRS financial measures should not be considered a replacement for and should be read together with our IFRS results. Users can find the IFRS to non-IFRS reconciliations within our earnings release and in the appendices at the end of the slide presentation available on our website.
Please note that certain financial information within this presentation represent adjusted figures for 2021 and 2022. All adjusted figures have been adjusted for exceptional items, acquisition-related, share-based payment and related expenses as well as noncash FX gains or losses. Unless otherwise noted, all comments from here on will refer to those adjusted numbers.
With that, I will hand you over to Stefan.
Stefan Descheemaeker - CEO & Director
Thank you, Tony, and welcome to the team for your first quarterly earnings. Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you all for joining us on the call today. We're pleased to review our results for the first quarter and to report that we are executing well and remain on track to deliver the 2022 guidance we set back in February.
Our business has been significantly restricted by a difficult macro backdrop, and we see these results as a great achievement for our team. We're not entirely satisfied with the performance, but we are encouraged by the resilience of our business model, the strength of our brands and our ability to navigate difficult waters.
With the war in Ukraine, we face an unprecedented geopolitical challenge starting the first quarter of 2022. Our [input] costs have risen sharper year-on-year, while our consumers are coming under increasing pressure from high inflation across Europe. It is with this backdrop that we're focusing on performance and delivery, driving world-class retail execution and strengthening our consumer proposition, while further refining our supply chain through targeted investments and process improvements.
Looking ahead to the rest of the year. We are well ahead of input costs and we expect at least 1 more round of price increases to help offset a significant portion of our cost inflation. Supported by our strong free cash flows, we plan to maintain our investment in brand and supply chain improvements, supporting us in 2022 and beyond. We're also investing in our latest acquisition in the Adriatics. We are well-positioned for the future.
With that, I'd like to recap our first quarter key financial metrics, beginning we'll report revenues of EUR 733 million, which increased by 3.6% driven by the first year of inclusion of our newly acquired (inaudible) business. Organic revenue declined by 4.5%, reflecting difficult volume comparisons against the COVID lockdown that we're seeing in place this time last year. We delivered an adjusted gross margin of 27.9%, 250 basis points lower year-on-year, reflecting the impact of acquisition, lower organic sales and higher raw material costs.
Adjusted EBITDA of EUR 132 million represents a 4% decline compared to last year as higher input costs before pricing [weighed] on the results. And finally, adjusted EPS was EUR 0.43 per share. Although this represents a 9% decline versus last year, we are still on track to deliver our 2022 adjusted EPS guidance of EUR 1.71 to EUR 1.75.
Turning to Slide 4. In the first quarter, positive revenue growth was driven by the [rather] first-time inclusion of both [Adriatics] frozen business and a small boost from currency. Our organic sales declined 4.5% as we lapped last year's strong volume results driven by COVID's lockdowns. We lost sales in the U.K. due to a poultry shortage and lost sales in another large market due to a pricing dispute with a major retail customer.
Stripping out these one-off items, our organic revenues would have been down low single digits for the period. We have since successfully resolved both issues. We did not get the full benefit of our pricing actions during the quarter as the pricing was faced for the period with many of our increases related to March. We expect our second quarter sales trends to improve as we get the full benefit of our first quarter pricing and begin lapping post-COVID lockdowns comparison. However, we do not expect our margin recovery to gain momentum until the second half of the year after we take our next round of pricing on top of our first one from Q1.
Traditionally, we take pricing once annually, acting early in the year. However, we are in a period of unprecedented cost inflation, and we will be taking more pricing-mediated recover costs. We're planning at least one more wave of pricing for the second half of the year, starting early in the U.K. This should boost our top line and help offset the record inflation we are experiencing.
Just to be clear, there is always a time lag between cost increases, which are linear, and our price increases to the retailer, which are staggered. What matters to us is the long-term evolution of our margin, and we believe it is imperative to recover gross profit dollars and margin this year to position us appropriately for next year. We're on track to deliver that recovery into 2023.
Our market share trends were highly encouraging in the quarter. Overall, we grew value share 10 basis points across all of our markets. However, we grew share 60 basis points on average in our top 4 markets, which represents more than 60% of our sales. These are the must win battles where we define our commercial success. Higher input costs weighed on our gross margin and profit in Q1. However, we are well-prepared for the rest of 2022 with roughly 85% of our raw material hedged. On energy, we are effectively covered for 2022 and have begun hedging for 2023.
In edible oils, we have had no shortage to date, and we've taken covered position on all our requirements for 2022. With this supply crisis, we have accelerated execution of our risk mitigation strategies, and we have taken steps to diversify our sourcing portfolio across key ingredients. We are also adjusting our product formulations wherever appropriate, while still meeting our high-quality standards. We're also quickly taking steps to reduce the volume of Russian waters fish we use in our products further derisking our business.
In the year-to-date, we have been highly encouraged by the performance of our new business in the Adriatic region, driven by an outstanding team across the 8 markets. All [these] performance was strong, giving us confidence of a return to pre-COVID tourism levels for the summer selling season when ice cream consumption peaks. The integration program is progressing well, and we are confident we will meet our EUR 15 million synergy target by 2024. In August 2021, we announced a $500 million buyback program, which expires in August 2024. In Q1, we repurchased nearly 27 million in shares, and we continue to regard share repurchases as highly accretive option to drive shareholder value.
Turning to Slide 5. This is not the first time Nomad has been tested during a period of uncertainty. Over our history, we've passed through multiple challenges and have come out a better company on the other side. After Nomad's creation in 2015, we turned the company around and create growth culture in must win battle focus, which is now at the center of who we are today. We managed through the unique challenge of Brexit in 2019 and then the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021. We will be challenged this year by high inflation and the war in Ukraine, but I believe we have robust plans in place and are well-positioned to deliver to our commitments and come out a strong organization. In this difficult environment, we are continuing to provide security of supply for our retail partners, and I'm especially pleased with how our supply chain has evolved to meet these new challenges.
In 2020 and early 2021, we navigated the exceptional [COVID] demand growth when our facilities were running at higher than 90% capacity. Through late 2021 and this year-to-date, we have step changed our capacity to source, convert and supply at the highest quality despite global shortage of raw materials and exceptional inflationary pressures. Our current service level improved significantly from a year ago, finishing the first quarter of 2022 at a 96% fill rate, an improvement of 300 basis points versus the same period last year.
Additionally, we've maintained our focus on innovation and we are actively evolving our portfolio to reflect new market realities. This is especially important in light of the rapidly climbing costs for all of our proteins. Our flagship Green Cuisine plant protein line is gaining share, and we have more innovation planned for the second quarter with that brand. We are also pleased that in Grocer Gold Awards in 2022, Green Cuisine has been shortlisted for Food Brand of the Year. In addition, our Proud to Power Team GB for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics campaign has also been shortlisted for Consumer Initiative of the Year.
Finally, it is worth noting that even with this difficult backdrop, we are resolute in our focus on our social responsibility commitments. We've maintained our efforts on meeting our ESG goal especially in the area of net carbon neutrality. When looking out to the balance of 2022, we believe we are on track to deliver against our most important financial metrics. As Samy will discuss later in more detail, we are excited to grow our business in line with what we have achieved in recent years.
I believe it is important to look at what we have accomplished in the creation of this business in 2015. After consolidating Birds Eye, iglo and Findus, we've grown revenues from EUR 1.9 billion to EUR 2.6 billion in 2021, with a run rate this year of EUR 2.9 billion, including a full year of our new Adriatics business. We expect to have more than double adjusted EPS from 2016 to the end of 2022.
We have successfully integrated more than EUR 1 billion of accretive acquisitions, including Goodfella's, Aunt Bessie's and Findus Switzerland, and we plan to add more value-creating strategic assets in the future. There is volatility in the situation, including our supply chain, and we expect to see some elasticity in our sales this year, but we are confident that our business is well-positioned to produce good results under difficult conditions. Also, I'm confident that our growth will accelerate when this period of uncertainty eases, supported by our excellent team across Europe, a strong brand portfolio and a proven track record of deploying capital in an optimal way, driving value for our shareholders.
With that, I will now hand the call over to Samy to review our financial results and guidance in more detail. Samy?
Samy Rene Zekhout - CFO & Director
Thank you, Stefan, and thank you all for your participation on the call today. Turning to Slide 7, I will provide more detail on our key first quarter operating metrics. Our reported revenues of EUR 733 million in the first quarter, a growth of 3.6% year-on-year, driven primarily by the acquisition of our Adriatics business. As a reminder, that transaction was finalized in September 2021. Beyond M&A, first quarter revenues also benefited 1.4 percentage points from favorable FX translation. These growth drivers were offset by a 4.5% decline in organic revenues due to difficult lockdown comparisons, supply chain constraints in the U.K. and the loss of some promotional volumes in key markets.
Gross margins were 27.9% during the first quarter, reflecting a 250 basis point decline compared to the prior year and in line with our expectations. This was composed of a 200 basis point decline in our base business as inflationary pressures impacted margins during the quarter. The remaining 50 basis points contraction was driven by the inclusion of the Adriatics acquisition, whose gross margins are seasonally lower at this time of the year. Mitigating pricing follow at a lag with further price increases expected to be implemented through 2022.
Moving to the rest of the P&L. First quarter adjusted operating expenses of EUR 94 million was stable year-over-year. This year-on-year stability reflects a more normalized level of A&P spend. We remain committed to supporting our brands with appropriate level of spending. First quarter adjusted EBITDA of EUR 132 million was down 4% versus the prior year, and our adjusted EPS of EUR 0.43 reflected a 9% decline versus the prior year, reflecting the factors previously discussed.
Turning to cash flow on Slide 8. We generated EUR 46 million of adjusted free cash flow in the first quarter, equating to 62% free cash flow conversion. This is below Q1 of last year as we are still benefiting from a COVID-related tailwind before we rebuild our inventory position during the remainder of 2021. Change in working capital switched from a (inaudible) of cash last year to a EUR 29 million use of cash in this quarter as we build raw material inventories in anticipation of possible shortages.
While CapEx was flat versus a year ago in Q1, we do expect a higher CapEx for the year as we support strategic investment decisions. Changes in both cash interest and cash tax in the quarter were broadly offsetting, primarily due to phasing. We expect to deliver strong free cash flow during this year. However, we also expect a combination of stepped-up capital investment, higher inventories and the implementation of the EU's unfair trading proactive directive to leave us short of our typical 90% to 100% medium-term conversion targets.
With that, let's turn to our final slide, Slide 9, to review our 2022 guidance which we are reiterating from CAGNY and our year-end 2021 earnings report in February. Our guidance on sales and EPS is based on our best projections of cost inflation and other factors in the second half of 2022. As Stefan mentioned in his remarks, we plan to recover cost inflation through several ways of pricing throughout the year, and thus, we expect an improving gross margin profile over the course of 2022. We expect the second wave of pricing to support margin recovery in the second half so that we can start 2023 with an appropriate level of margin.
We remain reactive to market dynamics. Hence, we will need to execute the third wave of pricing towards the end of the year, should inflationary pressures persist. The Adriatics business is weighted to the second and third quarter, and we expect the favorable mix from the Adriatics to provide a tailwind to margin during those quarters as well. So to be clear, we expect a sequentially improving financial performance throughout 2022 based on our improving margin evolution as our pricing takes hold.
We expect organic revenue growth in the low single-digit trend of 2022. This will be driven by sales and price increases to the first and second half of the year. Low single-digit growth is consistent with what we guided in February. However, we expect a deeper mix of volume and price in our sales buildup than in our original guidance. In our original guidance, we expected a relatively balanced mix of volume and price with a small spread between the two. However, we now expect the wider spread between price and volume with significantly higher pricing, but much more negative volumes as we push for maximum cost recovery.
We expect the Adriatics contribution to revenue to support our reported revenue guidance of high single digits for the full year. Finally, we expect adjusted EPS in the range of EUR 1.71 to EUR 1.75 per share, another year of double-digit growth.
That concludes our remarks. I will now turn the session over to Q&A. Thank you. Operator, back to you.
Operator
(Operator Instructions) The first question comes from Robert Moscow with Credit Suisse.
Robert Bain Moskow - Research Analyst
I wanted to ask one question about the guidance. I think you said you might need a third wave of pricing if inflation persists. And I wanted to know, does that mean that if inflation keeps climbing from here, you'll need a third wave? Or does that mean that if costs stay as high as they are today, you'll need a third wave? And then I'd like a quick follow-up.
Stefan Descheemaeker - CEO & Director
Robert, I mean, actually, what this means is that what we are seeing is a steady increase in inflation. And now in the middle of, let's say, the execution of the current pricing, which is the second wave, and if effectively -- inflation keeps on creeping up, if overall, then we would effectively consider third wave at this stage.
Robert Bain Moskow - Research Analyst
Okay. And then my next one, I wanted to make sure I understood your competitive positioning in fish. You've been very transparent about 50% of your supply coming from Russia. And that would seem like a logical thing to present to a retailer to raise price.
But I was wondering if you knew whether your competitors in private label and other brands, are they facing the same challenges as you and therefore, they have to raise as well? Or do you think that you're the one who has to raise more than they do because of your sourcing?
Stefan Descheemaeker - CEO & Director
Thanks for the question. It's very simple. Obviously, we don't have the full intelligence, but we have -- it's good intelligence. And our understanding is that our competitors, mostly some brand players but mostly private label producers are exactly in the same situation,, if sometimes probably even more dependent on Russian fish.
So it's -- for them, it's -- they're facing the same situation, I would put it that way. I think we -- we're moving quite fast. I can't judge for them. Then in terms of cost increase, I would say it that way, Robert. It's -- well, it's broad-based. It's not limited to fish by the way, it's about cost. But in terms of fish, well, I don't see why they would have a different situation in terms of price.
The only question they're facing, but I'm not in their shoes is when they are going to decide, obviously to par the price, the cost increase: a, from the private label supplier to the retailer; and b, from the retailer to the consumers. That is, obviously, something which is not in my remit. But it's going to come, no matter what. It's more a question of when than if.
I would even argue, if you don't mind, that as a private label, you're starting from a lower baseline in terms of price but you're facing exactly, in absolute terms, the same kind of cost increase, which means that in the relative terms, your -- if you -- if and when you're going to pass the COGS increase, in relative terms, it's going to be a steeper increase.
Operator
The next question comes from Cody Ross with UBS.
Cody T. Ross - Analyst
First question, I'm a little confused about your organic growth guidance for 2022. In your press release, you noted a modest organic revenue decline for the year. And in the slides in your commentary, you noted a low single-digit organic growth. Can you just help us put those 2 together?
Samy Rene Zekhout - CFO & Director
Yes, sure. I think there has been corrected statements that may be made in the press release that have just been informed. I mean right now, I think an [incorrect] version has been put there. There will be modest growth. The remarks I have put in the speech in the comments on the earnings are the correct ones. It is a modest organic growth for the year. That's what is intended at this stage.
Cody T. Ross - Analyst
Got it. That's helpful. And then you held your full year EPS outlook. Many investors we speak with are concerned about the second half operating environment as it gets tougher. Can you just help us understand some of the assumptions underpinning their expectations for the second half, assuming organic sales growth to sequentially build, gross margin declines moderate, and then operating expense, should we expect that to decline in the back half? Is that the right way to think about it?
Samy Rene Zekhout - CFO & Director
Yes. I would say, overall, when you take the total (inaudible) we see effectively a bit of a steady inflation impact across the quarter, more or less, if you have a bit of a ramp-up gradually going from, let's say, the end of the last year getting into this year.
At the same time we have implemented the first wave of pricing in Q1, which is executed as we speak and where we see the impact, effectively full-fledge impact as of probably the end of Q1, as we have mentioned. And we're in the process of implementing the second price initial. So there is effectively when you look at point-to-point end of December to early January, you see this gradual development of pricing with quite a significant step up in pricing in order for -- from an average standpoint, to recover the totality of the inflation or, at least, to end up with an exiting picture, if you want, that we have compensated for the inflation.
So when you take those 2 elements into consideration, there is an element of neutralization, that's the objective in order to preserve the cost structure and set the right base for 2023. At the same time, effectively, we continue to maintain our cost discipline. We continue to maintain (inaudible) to tighten the screw. We have made some discretionary intervention that are clearly not impacting the business there. And we still have some element of protection as we see at this stage in terms of in case effective inflation moves up a bit further, we have talked about the possibility of a third wave. And we do have some discretionary intervention that we could trigger should affect the situation requires some more intervention.
So at the very stage, under the hypothesis that we have, I mean, clearly, we feel comfortable with the guidance range that we have of EUR 1.71 to EUR 1.75 per share EPS.
Operator
The next question comes from Steve Powers with Deutsche Bank.
Stephen Robert R. Powers - Research Analyst
I was hoping you could give us a little bit more perspective on your raw materials expectations, less from a cost perspective, but more from an availability perspective. I'm most focused on fish, whitefish from Russia, but just more broadly, if relevant.
I guess in the case where EU or U.K. relations with Russia continue to deteriorate and the tail risk of excessive tariffs or even importation bans on Russia Whitefish, how do you size that risk? And then what are your mitigation strategies in the event that tail risk might actually play out?
Stefan Descheemaeker - CEO & Director
Well, we've not been waiting for it to materialize. At this stage, to be fair in this stage, we just can be sourced in a normal way, so that's one thing. But at the same time, as we said repeatedly, we're taking step to reduce the volume purchase there. Again, it's not like you switch off and switch on the light. You're talking about fish and you need to breathe to obviously grow the fish to make sure that you have the right quality. It has to be MSC or ASC, so high quality standard, which is really what Nomad is all about.
But with that constraint, which is a great constraint, yes, we have -- we need to find -- we are finding some ways to increase the purchase from outside of Russia. We're working with some replacement in terms of species like [egg], for example, which is very close in terms of flesh and taste.
We're starting -- and it's something that is going to be significant in the coming years. We're starting with farm fish [use]. Today, we are something like 98% is white coat. But definitely, the future lies also with farm fish provided again that we're dealing with the same kind of quality criteria. So in other words, instead of going to MSC, which is Marine Stewardship Council, we're going to ASC, which is Aquaculture Stewardship Council. And this is the kind of things we're going to develop together with the farms in -- mostly in Southeast Asia. So we're taking action steps to get there.
And in the meantime, yes, obviously, we're also working with Green Cuisine, which is we have a fantastic product, which is called Fishless Fingers. And it is working very well, aside by the way, from many threats. But there definitely is a product that is, today, one of the best sellers in the U.K. [incoming] countries like Germany. And so other options we're taking.
But definitely, I can tell you, let's say, the procurement team and the R&D teams are reasonably busy, right, which is the right thing to do, by the way. Because we don't think that there is a way back to the previous situation. So we want to reduce our dependency and we're going to -- no matter what happens in the future, so we don't think it's going to be back to a normal situation.
There is a new normal, and we're trying to define this new normal together with our suppliers. That's for fish. In terms of other materials, well, let's say, aside from the fact that everything has been -- the price have been increasing, it's been a broad, let's say, broad-based pricing situation. Big things, I think, coming from this country is, for example, edible oils. And so it's impacted by the war, but we are contracted for edible oils. And we have taken [COVID] position on (inaudible) requirements for 2022. So we have had no shortages to date.
We also used rapeseed oil. As you know, I mean it's -- rapeseed oil has been an important -- I mean a lot of people haven't heard for the first time, sometimes, rapeseed oil and more important than this, in food. And so we're working with our key suppliers, and we've been working with our key suppliers to ensure that (inaudible) are improved and source if required, which is fine. And I think, again, though, we're doing this without damaging at all, the quality standards that we have with Nomad.
Energy is another thing. Obviously, we know where we stand at this stage. We have a multiyear COVID strategy to 2025. We covered in 2022, we'll hedge it for 2023, starting in 2024. So I think we've taken the right measures. But again, it's not there to stop here. So more to come in the coming weeks, months and quarters.
Stephen Robert R. Powers - Research Analyst
That is extremely helpful. If I could ask one follow-up on a different topic. On the second and potentially third rounds of pricing that you're anticipating or contemplating, how -- in your low single-digit organic growth guidance, how have you factored in potential retailer friction as you saw in the first quarter on future waves of pricing? Is that something you've baked into the outlook?
Samy Rene Zekhout - CFO & Director
We carry, I mean, of course, I mean, already mentioned, let's say, observing that in the conversation we had. I mean, just to give you some perspective in the context of the first round and I'll give you some perspective. At the same time, if you want for every price increase we have done historically, we had a number of [tension] points because this is an exercise that usually start in September, October of the prior year. And that ends up around end of February, depending on the market.
And there has always been a point, obviously, debate, negotiation and so on. But this year, we only had one and which had ended up actually in a positive way, which is quite unusual, but that tells you one thing, which is effectively retails and manufacturers are in the same boat in this stage. I do think that the simple fact that there is a broad-based inflation challenge that's hitting everybody. There is a matter of frankly preservation of margin even at their end, which they do understand.
The question effectively is about talking about funding, if you want, the whole pricing and who's going to be effective pricing by the most. At this very end, we have gone pretty successfully in the first wave. And on the second wave, we are managing the mix. There are different variables that we have. I just want to highlight to you that pricing is pricing, effectively priced. But there's a number of other elements that we are looking at, such as promotion as an example or potential if you want to work in a bit more on the mix, working effectively as well on (inaudible) in order for us to boost the total mix. That's what we call our revenue growth management strategy, and we're clearly leveraging both sides, which is purely priced and revenue growth management to circumvent some possible risk at this (inaudible). But indeed, I mean, those risks are there and it's our job to manage the totality of the portfolio of risk in order to deliver against the objective.
Operator
The next question comes from Jon Tanwanteng with CJS Securities.
Jonathan E. Tanwanteng - MD
Nice quarter. You mentioned that you were 85% hedged on your supply. Where are you open ended at this point, either by feedstock or end market? And kind of what are the risks there that you're looking at?
Stefan Descheemaeker - CEO & Director
Well, as to your point, I think we hedged 85% until the end of the year, and I think we're making progress moving forward in 2023. But the 15% is really, I mean, where there are some categories where it's really difficult on some of our ingredients. It's impossible, rather impossible to hedge. So we're pushing the system to the limit. But I'm coming from an environment where we like to hedge 100% on a 12-month basis. I think we're making progress from that standpoint.
But when you also need to recognize there are some pieces of the business where it's almost impossible. Is it -- there is nothing that I would like to pinpoint. I think it's more broad-based. But let's say, it's more ingredients, you can -- let's say, we mentioned, for example, eggs, that kind of things are a bit more difficult than some other categories in that way.
Samy Rene Zekhout - CFO & Director
You will just -- I mean, I'm sure that you're familiar with all of the food business, but in institutional where you have effectively fish, poultry and veggies and so on. It's not necessarily in the best interest even of the supplier to really look in an entire year. I think the team has done an extraordinary job to get us to the 85% and really pushing even furthermore. But it's really a question of realigning with suppliers and making sure that we can benefit from their production in whichever form it is, in order for us to look completely for the year, the price. And as Stefan said, there -- the antagonism on this one, which is at the same time as we want to get the 85% higher, we need to plan the feeds to frankly get to a proper coverage of (inaudible) for 2023.
Jonathan E. Tanwanteng - MD
Okay, great. And I don't know if you addressed this, but how should we think of your capital allocation priorities, given valuations are down across the board in a number of sectors and assets. And including your own shares, are repurchases more of a priority now? Or is M&A still the focus for you guys?
Samy Rene Zekhout - CFO & Director
The message, I mean, is still the same. I mean, clearly, it's all about only seeking for the best opportunity to maximize return at this stage. We have -- and we stated effective that we have an opportunistic approach on that one, and we are in constant assessment of all of the options available, including those that you mentioned. And of course, is forcing the business. So that's frankly the view that we have.
Stefan Descheemaeker - CEO & Director
Yes. Sometimes also it's gone (inaudible) to buy additional coverage.
Jonathan E. Tanwanteng - MD
Okay. If I could ask one more. Is your scale enabling you to take share and engage shelf space in a tough environment versus maybe which competitors are joining at this point?
Stefan Descheemaeker - CEO & Director
Can you repeat the question? I'm not sure I can get it.
Jonathan E. Tanwanteng - MD
Is your scale and those supply agreements enabling you to drive shelf space and market share gain in this environment?
Stefan Descheemaeker - CEO & Director
Well, I think overall, I think the order supply chains have been obviously challenged. We're not the only ones. And I would say that in some categories where we have a significant position, yes, scale is a positive, especially long-term agreements. People remember, especially in more challenging times.
Samy Rene Zekhout - CFO & Director
I think I would say, I would call it like scale and if you know how and category competency. Retailers are really looking at us clearly to help reshape the shelf at some point, there are movements within food across the different sectors. So that it's not just scale, I think in itself. The organization has developed a very deep knowledge, a very deep in-store knowledge and sharing knowledge whereby the retailers are really looking at, frankly, help them design the shelf, while maximizing in other revenue at their end, and we actually we consider us to help them in that if necessary.
Operator
The next question comes from Ryan Bell with Consumer Edge Research.
Ryan Blaze Bell - Analyst
Would you be able to discuss how the Fortenova integration is going? And then also maybe give a little bit of an understanding that the recovery on the on-premise broadly across your portfolio, but obviously, specifically for Fortenova and the regions that they operate in.
Stefan Descheemaeker - CEO & Director
So overall, to make it simple, I mean, the Fortenova condition is doing -- integration is doing extremely well. By the way, it's an interesting pattern because of all the acquisitions we've been through so far with a clear focus behind frozen food, which I keep believing that the focus is paying off in terms of obviously (inaudible), in terms of how to approach an acquisition, how to generate synergies.
And every time we're going through another acquisition, we (inaudible) or let's say, model is improving, and Fortenova is really in the middle of this. So first, the first thing is what we've seen after an extensive due diligence in no rigged surprise. By definition, you always have surprises but let's say, at this stage, no, we have more good surprises than the bad surprises. That's one thing.
The team is extremely supportive, extremely excited to be part of being a core strategy of the organization, which is a big change for them. And I can tell you in terms of energy, it's a huge -- it makes a huge difference. People also want to learn -- and I think we have, let's say, some interesting tools that they can take.
And on top of that, to your point, I think we also have -- back to on-premise, we -- we think it's a great asset for ice cream, but also for frozen food. We have 120,000, let's say, freezers across the organization. It's part of our CapEx, by the way. It's something that we knew from the start that we need to obviously read, let's say, improve the quality of the assets is something we're doing right now, just in the last -- the last piece of it right now for this year.
And what we've seen, at least, so far is Easter has been extremely good for us. So we're starting to come back to pre-COVID -- let's say, COVID situations in terms of ice cream, because this is obviously, let's say, other form imports was a bit turn obviously, has been, let's say, there were some issues during COVID. I think you can see it's improving big time.
So we're quite confident at what's going to happen in the summer is going to be extremely helpful with a very good team, improve the infrastructure, new tools and post-COVID. Yes, I think it's -- we really like the acquisition and by the way, we also love the margins in both ice cream, it's a great margin. We love it.
Ryan Blaze Bell - Analyst
And if I could just ask one more. You took sales pricing throughout 1Q, and you highlighted a significant portion of that actually came towards the back half or the back end of the quarter. Would you be able to talk about the depth of the price increases kind of as we talk towards the end of the quarter, just to understand the magnitude of the full effect of this pricing?
Stefan Descheemaeker - CEO & Director
Yes. I think the comment was really to talk more about the pricing impact on the sales and execution. The reality is that in the FMCG world, when you pass a list price, you have to support your business during transition time, and you have to put in place the relevant level of promotions, together with the retailer in order to facilitate the transition from a given price point to another price point.
So managing your promotion during the price increase is essential. So what happened is, just to pick an example, if you have a market that's technically raising prices on Jan 1, you rarely -- if you want to open net impact on your net sales of pricing, you start to see the effect after probably 45 days or so, 45, 50 days on average. So it's not that we have deferred the execution. I think what's really important was that we did execute the price, actually even the U.K. started even earlier than that, but the majority of the market have executed all of the pricing between Jan and February.
But let's say, the ramp-up of the effect on a net basis after promotion is really hitting most as of March, let's say.
Ryan Blaze Bell - Analyst
And would you be able to say kind of the size of that pricing on a percentage basis?
Samy Rene Zekhout - CFO & Director
Yes. I think it's quite holding on. I think it's in the right part of the mid-single-digit level. I mean depending on the market. Some of them was a bit on the high end of the -- let's say, single digit, the other one where we moved closer to the mid-single than the average. It's probably around the mid-single for the least price execution standpoint, not after promotional (inaudible).
Operator
(Operator Instructions) The next question comes from Robert Moskow with Credit Suisse.
Robert Bain Moskow - Research Analyst
Just a follow-up. The frozen category in Europe, the data looks pretty weak. Declines have continued. I thought it was due to increased mobility among consumers. How is the category doing compared to others in Europe? And has that influenced at all the retailers' willingness to allow higher pricing to go through?
Stefan Descheemaeker - CEO & Director
Well, I think to start with your second part, I don't think it -- I don't think it impacts the willingness to come up with prices because they also, by the way, as you know, I mean, they are private labels. So they're going through the same kind of COGS as us. So that would be -- and that would be a big mistake and we're not making this mistake.
To your point, I think at this stage, yes, let's say, frozen is a bit weaker than the others. But then you need also to remember that during the same period last year -- I mean during COVID, it significantly overperformed the other categories, ambient and perishable. So overall, when you see on a 2-year basis, we're still doing very well. So I'm not concerned. But definitely, we want to see, obviously,things moving on. So that's one thing.
So yes, that's -- we're very much taking a longer-term approach, a 2-year approach, 3-year approach. It's -- the numbers are very, very consistent. I also believe, by the way, and I don't know if you noticed that we've come up with an announcement in terms of sustainability and the LTA, which is life cycle assessment. We've come up with a study, a very thorough study, by the way, end to end in terms of, let's say, our 22 bigger SKUs.
And we compared the carbon footprint end-to-end really from, let's say, the field to the fork where the equivalent in, let's say, in fresh or in ambient. And I think for most of them, we're doing equal or better than these guys. And the reason is most of the time is attributed to waste because the waste level at the store level is obviously much better for us, the same thing for the consumers.
So I think one thing that we need to probably communicate better is also waste is great in terms of sustainability, or less waste. But it's even better for the disposable income. So in other words, if you -- if you're going to save money on a full year basis, if you go to -- at the same price with frozen foods because the waste level is just much lower, not only at the retailer level, but also the consumer.
So that's the kind of things that we believe that the fundamentals -- the fundamentals from -- of course (inaudible). And at this stage, as I said, yes, it's a bit weaker. But when you're taking the long-term trend, it's very much (inaudible).
Operator
The next question comes from Cody Ross with UBS.
Cody T. Ross - Analyst
Just a quick question. You only repurchased 27 million worth of shares. Stock is down 30% this year, and you have nearly $400 million left in dry powder. At what point would you consider it accelerating your share repurchase?
Samy Rene Zekhout - CFO & Director
Yes, I'm going to repeat the message I gave you. I mean before, we have made those repurchase effectively prior to the Ukraine war. And we made it very clear in our communication that the priority for us is to make sure that we clearly have access to supply in order to serve our consumers. That was really important.
And that's why effectively, we spent probably more money inventorying, building, I mean (inaudible) to have our plants functioning, our full regime I mean from that perspective. So from a general standpoint, if you want -- as we generate cash, if you want, let's say, quarter after quarter, we're looking at effectively the best way to allocate this capital. In fact at this stage, frankly, there is no, let's say, secret (inaudible) there. We just after shareholder value maximization. And we're in a constant, let's say, look of that.
Taking into consideration, of course, the external environment, which is all about effective supply (inaudible) the question was raised earlier. So I think it's -- there's no magic formula. There's not going to be a threshold per se, but it's all about what's affecting the right mix that's going to get us to maximization of shareholder value.
Operator
This concludes the question-and-answer session. I would like to turn the conference back over to Stefan Descheemaeker for any closing remarks.
Stefan Descheemaeker - CEO & Director
Thanks, operator, and thank you for your participation on today's call. 2022 has gotten off to a challenging start, but we're optimistic. Yes, the troubling war in Ukraine has presented us with a difficult set of hurdles and it has for everyone around the globe. But we are encouraged by the great people working at Nomad, our fruitful partnership with our retail customers and our loyal consumers.
We will remain focused on delivering our business objectives even in these tumultuous conditions. Frozen food, as I said, is a healthy, nutritious, affordable option for all families, especially during difficult times like these. Our business is built to survive in tough conditions, and we expect to come out of this crisis stronger than before. We deliver a fifth consecutive year of record financial performance in 2021, and we expect to do so again in 2022.
Operator
This concludes today's conference call. You may disconnect your lines. Thank you for participating, and have a pleasant day.