FRANCE – Danone, a French multinational food-products corporation, has reaffirmed its objectives to drive sustainable growth and create a sustainable shareholder value, following the company’s 2020 and 2030 strategic goals.

According to the company, it activates high quality drivers to achieve its ambition, while building on a balanced business model, which includes leveraging unique leadership positions across the world.

The company is also embedding its 100% packaging circularity vision in its Waters brands as a catalyst for consumer engagement, to drive continued profitable growth, along with reinforced focus on valorized innovations, notably in Aquadrinks.

For the specialized nutrition in China, Danone is fundamentally ready to address in the mid-term new profitable growth opportunities, positioning its strategy towards the faster growth areas, including by seizing the growth opportunities emerging from evolving lifestyles and needs from an ageing population.

Danone plans to triple its worldwide plant-based sales from US$2.21 billion to around US$6.49 billion by 2025 notably by accelerating its core plant-based beverages and yogurt categories.

It will also expand into adjacencies, and unlock unique opportunities by the combination of its leadership position in dairy business with the high plant-based growth potential.

“At the occasion of this Danone investor seminar in London, we are pleased to share with the financial community our good progress towards building a company uniquely positioned to embrace the food revolution.

We are developing our unique portfolio of health-focused and purpose-led Manifesto brands, acting as a catalyst for consumer reach,” said Emmanuel Faber, Chairman and CEO.

The newly formed Growth and Innovation organization is a key lever for growth acceleration, notably through re-imagining brands, optimizing consumer reach and engagement via precision marketing.

Together with its purpose-led Manifesto brand strategy, Danone will accelerate its presence in fast-growing channels with a priority on e-business, where the objective is to double sales by 2020 to US$2.6 billion.

Danone is making excellent progresses towards its Protein cost saving program, targeting US$1.3 billion savings by 2020, and is embedding efficiencies in its operating model to support sustainable profitable growth.

“Our growth strategy focuses on valorized innovations to address some of the fastest-growing trends, notably among the younger generations.

We continue to make our organizational model more efficient by empowering our people and fostering engagement,” said Emmanuel Faber, Chairman and CEO.

“Our strategic priorities remain to accelerate growth, maximize efficiencies, and allocate capital with discipline.

Our progress to date gives us every confidence in our ability to navigate increasing global volatility and deliver superior sustainable profitable growth, to create and share value.”

Danone confirms its 2018 guidance of double-digit recurring EPS growth at constant exchange rate, excluding Yakult Transaction impact.

Cécile Cabanis, CFO, added: “In an increasingly volatile environment, we are very pleased with the enhanced resilience of our operating model, delivering good results.

Given short-term headwinds, including in our Early Life Nutrition business in China, the path to 2020 will not be linear.

We continue to strengthen our business model to accelerate throughout 2019 and 2020, towards our objectives, in order to deliver consistent EPS growth and create sustainable shareholder value.”