Tag: Danone

Dairy giant Danone partners with FAO to build sustainable food systems in Egypt

Editor

EGYPT – French multinational dairy company, Danone has signed a partnership with The UN-Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) aiming at improving nutrition, agriculture practices and food safety across Egypt for more sustainable food systems. The collaboration involves exchanging the most recent information on developing food safety problems as well as sharing data on food consumption and nutritional intakes in the North African country. Using Egypt as the pilot nation, the parties will use the information in order to enhance awareness and encourage the adoption of better eating habits. Furthermore, the…

Read More

Danone bounces back to profitable growth in H1, announces board revamp, share buyback program

Editor

FRANCE – French multinational dairy company Danone has bounced back to growth in the first half of 2021, reporting a 1.6% rise in consolidated sales on a like-for-like basis.  Danone’s consolidated sales for the first half of the year amounted to €11.84 billion (US$14.07 billion), while operating income fell 4.2% LFL to €1.55 billion (US$1.84 billion).  In a statement, the company attributed this to a return to growth across all categories in the second quarter with net sales for the quarter increasing 6.6% on a like-for-like (LFL) basis.  The owner of…

Read More

Danone acquires majority stake in Harmless Harvest to accelerate growth of its plant-based business

Editor

USA – French dairy company Danone has through its venture arm Danone Manifesto Ventures (DMV) purchased a majority stake in Harmless Harvest to accelerate the growth of its plant-based business.   Harmless Harvest offers a range of organic coconut-based products, including coconut water, snack drinks, and yogurt alternatives.  The company is Fair for Life Certified and is said to be committed to sustainable agriculture through its Regenerative Coconuts Agriculture Project.  According to a statement from Danone, its new acquisition expects to generate more than US$100 million in sales in 2021, doubling its revenue from…

Read More

Danone offloads US plant-based nutritional products brand Vega as part of portfolio review

Editor

FRANCE -French dairy giant, Danone is selling Vega, Canada, and U.S. plant-based nutritional products brand, as part of a strategic portfolio review announced in October last year. According to a statement from Danone, Vega will be sold to funds managed by WM Partners, a US-based private equity investment firm focused on the health and wellness industry. WM Partners said the acquisition was made through the HPH II Investments Master Fund. Over the last two years, the HPH II fund has acquired hydration brand Ultima Replenisher, collagen business Great Lakes and…

Read More

Danone appoints Antoine de Saint-Affrique as Chief Executive Officer

Editor

FRANCE – Danone announces the appointment of former CEO of Barry Callebaut- a leading chocolate company based in Switzerland- Antoine de Saint-Affrique as Chief Executive Officer, effective September 15, 2021. Antoine de Saint-Affrique will succeed the joint interim leadership of Véronique Penchienati-Bosetta and Shane Grant. The Board of Directors also decided to propose Antoine de Saint-Affrique as a new member to the Board of Danone for appointment at the next annual shareholders’ meeting in April 2022. “As a Board we have delivered on our promise to search and find swiftly…

Read More

Danone finalizes sale of stake in Chinese dairy company Mengniu

Editor

FRANCE – French dairy company, Danone has finalized the strategic sale of its approximately 9.8% stake in China Mengniu Dairy Company Limited. According to a statement from the French dairy company, the transaction resulted in total gross proceeds of HKD 15.4 billion (US$1.93 billion) The settlement of the transaction will take place on May 17, 2021. The company further noted that in line with its disciplined capital allocation, the majority of the proceeds will be returned to shareholders through a share buyback program that will be announced soon. Mengniu is…

Read More

Danone impacted by pandemic in Q1 as Coca-Cola sees slight recovery

Editor

FRANCE – French dairy giant Danone and US beverage company Coca Cola have released their Q1 results, reporting mixing results as the pandemic continues to impact business operations across the globe. For the French dairy, sales declined 3.3% on a like-for-like (LFL) basis to €5.66 billion (about US$6.80 billion), affected largely by a 7.7% drop in its Specialized Nutrition unit and an 11.6% decline in water sales. Its noteworthy to mention that the company’s Essential Dairy and Plant-based (EDP) division managed to record a 1.5% LFL growth in sales to…

Read More

Danone debuts infant formula in pre-measured tabs, launches Alpro drinks production in Russia

Editor

UK – French multinational dairy company, Danone has launched Aptamil infant formula milk in a pre-measured tab format to make preparing formula milk more convenient.  The new formula milk tabs- developed in partnership with Japanese food manufacturer Meiji- are said to dissolve easily, and allow for more accurate measurement. This results in less wasted formula and less mess; making them particularly useful for night-time feeds. According to Danone, the new format will be available in packs of 24 sachets, with each sachet containing five tabs. One tab is equal to…

Read More

Danone makes executive leadership changes following Faber ouster, debuts new Honest to Goodness creamer

Editor

FRANCE – French multinational dairy giant Danone has made a number of executive leadership changes in response to the void left by the ouster of of former Chairman and CEO Emmanuel Faber. Faber was forced out of his positions by a group of dissatisfied activist investors who believed he was not doing enough to turn around the company’s fortunes. Following the departure of Faber, Danone Board appointed Gilles Schnepp, the immediate former Vice Chairman, as the new Chairman, effective immediately. Danone’s board also announced that Véronique Penchienati-Bosett, currently the Executive…

Read More

Nestlé sues French dairy company Danone for copying its Natural Bliss Coffee Creamer brand

Editor

US – World’s largest food company Nestlé has taken Danone to court alleging that the French dairy maker’s Silk brand coffee creamers copies the unique branding and packaging designs from its Coffee-mate Natural Bliss line Danone is accused of copying parts of the Natural Bliss line package, including the color and cap of the bottle and the light purple color band around the bottle’s neck listing the flavor. In a federal court filing in Virginia, Nestlé said its French competitor is modifying its product to “gain an instant marketplace boost”…

Read More