nestlé, the world's leading food manufacturer, was established in 1866 in switzerland. worldwide company sales in 2007 reached rmb 681 billion.<br><br>nestlé is the world's leading manufacturer of soluble coffee, infant nutrition, dairy products, confectionery, bouillons and seasonings, ice cream, bottled water, as well as petcare. the nestlé group is also involved in non-food-related products, including ophthalmic products (alcon) and a minority participation in the l'oreal cosmetics group. nestlé operates 480 factories worldwide and employs  people.<br><br>nestlé established its first trading office in shanghai as early as 1908. in order to better serve the entire china area, nestlé opened its corporate head office in beijing in 1996. to date, nestlé in greater china region has made an investment of some rmb 7 billion and operates 20 world-class factories. 99% of nestlé products sold in mainland china are locally manufactured. nestlé in greater china region employs more than  people, and total sales reached rmb 13 billion in 2007.</p>