By Maria Armental 

Packaged foods giant H.J. Heinz Co., which is merging with Kraft Foods Group Inc., reported a 12% drop in revenue in the first quarter hurt by foreign currency exchange rates and inventory buildup in the year-ago period.

Heinz, owned by Brazilian private-equity firm 3G Capital Partners LP's, shipped safety stock to retailers ahead of the launch of its data-analytic push in North America in the second quarter of 2014.

The company, which didn't offer a breakdown of sales figures, highlighted a double-digit increase of its soy sauce in China along with a single-digit increase in organic revenue of its namesake ketchup and infant products.

Sales in the U.S., it said, were hurt by a double-digit sales decline in frozen meals.

Still, Heinz, which logged $7.1 million in merger-related costs, reported net income for the quarter of $279 million, up from $199 million a year earlier, as the company benefited from net price gains and continued to cut costs as part of owner Brazilian private-equity firm 3G Capital Partners LP's "zero-based budgeting."

Heinz affirmed its projections for the year.

Write to Maria Armental at maria.armental@wsj.com

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