32 Super Interesting Things About Danone That You Should Know

A trend that is gaining momentum by the day, is choosing healthy food over the unhealthy ones. Talking about healthy foods like dairy or fermented milk products, the first name that comes to mind is Danone. With its range of fermented dairy products, Danone has been successfully making the right efforts for promoting its ambition of inculcating healthy eating habits.

The company is renowned all over the globe and has been catering to the demands for over 100 years. Here we present 32 super interesting facts about Danone that you should know.

1. Yogurt factory: Back in 1919, the company was established as a small yogurt factory in Barcelona, Spain.
2. Shift to France: Danone is a French company, which started its factory from Spain and it was not before 10 years that the company could shift its facility to France from Spain.
3. Company named after son: Isaac Carasso, the founder of Danone gave his company the name “Danone” after the nickname of his son, Daniel Carasso, who was lovingly called “Danone” at home.
4. More relatable name: In the United States, the company was named Dannon and not Danone, just to make the brand more relatable to the customers.
5. Dual business journey: In 1972, the Marseilles speech of Antoine Riboud encouraged the company to adopt a newer approach. Thus Danone shifted its focus to a dual business model wherein the company was not just committed to achieving business success but also give back to the society through its contribution towards social progress.
6. Birth of a giant: The month of December in the year 1972 also saw the birth of BSN-Gervais Danone, a giant in the food industry post the merger of Daniel Carasso and Antoine Riboud’s companies.
7. The leader in China: Danone entered China’s market in 1987 and since its entry, the company has been leading the market. Notably, China is one of the top 5 markets for Danone’s products.
8. Acquisition of the first Asian company: Post the formation of BSN-Gervais Danone, the first Asian company to be acquired was Amoy, which specialized in frozen foods and soy sauce. The acquisition of the Hong Kong-based company was made in the year 1991.
9. Foray into Russia: Antoine Riboud visited Russia before the company forayed into Russia. Riboud was surprised by the long queues in front of the McDonald’s stores but the long queue shifted to the Danone store after the company’s entry into Russia in 1992.
10. The third-largest company in Europe: It was within 20 years post the merger and the acquisitions made, that BSN-Gervais Danone became the third-largest food company in Europe.
11. New name and logo: In 1994, the company shortened its name from BSN-Gervais Danone to Danone. Moreover, the new logo featuring a child gazing at a star was introduced.
12. The Danone Nations Cup (DNC): Danone launched the Danone Nations Cup (DNC) in 2000. This football tournament is the biggest competition for children in the age bracket of 10 to 12 years. It also gives children the opportunity to explore the diverse cultures of the world through traveling.
13. Sale of the biscuits business: For approximately $5.3 billion, Danone sold off its biscuit segment to Kraft Food Inc. in 2007.
14. The takeover of baby food company: The year 2007 also saw the company take over the Dutch baby food and clinical nutrition company, Numico. This takeover made Danone the second largest manufacturer of baby food in the world.
15. Commitment towards the environment: The company made efforts to safeguard the environment and this is evident from its campaigns against littering, which was introduced in 1971 and also its decision to switch from PVC to PET in 1980.
16. Danone Fund for Nature: In 2011, Danone formed the Danone Fund for Nature, through which the company takes up causes for the protection of nature.
17. Livelihoods Funds: Apart from its own initiative for the protection of nature, the company also formed the Livelihoods funds in 2011, through which other companies are invited to join their efforts for the protection of nature.
18. Joint venture with Grameen Group: Danone joined hands with Bangladesh’s Grameen Group to form the Grameen Danone Food Limited (GFDL). Through GFDL, the company makes it products available for the economically weak populations in emerging countries.
19. Introduction of revolutionary concepts: The joint venture with Grameen Group and the company’s efforts in Bangladesh and Senegal paved the way for innovations and revolutionary concepts.
20. Investments in Africa: Over a period of two years, Danone invested about 1 billion euros and also committed to taking initiative for the local development.
21. Products for all: Danone caters to both the affluent population with its premium range of products and also the low-income population with its nutritious yet low-cost range of products.
22. Totally recyclable PET bottles: With the aim of commercializing 100 percent bio-based PET bottles, the company collaborated with Origin Materials.
23. Arrival in 2020: The year 2020 will witness the arrival of the first batch of biodegradable bottles with the Natur’ALL Bottle Alliance.
24. The annual collection of milk: At Danone, the annual collection of fresh milk each year, totals more than 8 billion liters!
25. Sale of fresh milk products: At Danone, the sale of fresh milk products amounts to more than €11 billion.
26. Acquisition of WhiteWave Foods: Danone acquired WhiteWave Foods in 2017 for $12.5 billion to strengthen its foothold in the United States.
27. Number 1 in the US: In the United States, Danone is the No. 1 yogurt brand.
28. Huge sales figure of Activa: The sales figure of Danone’s Activa stood at more than 3.5 billion yogurt cups in 10 years, only in Canada!
29. The tenth anniversary of Activa in Canada: Recently, Danone’s brand Activa celebrated its tenth year of presence in the Canadian market.
30. The Danone Law: When PepsiCo approached Danone with the motive of a takeover in 2005-2006, the French government intervened and prevented the takeover with the Danone Law.
31. Research and innovation center: In 2013, Danone founded Nutricia Research, its new research and innovation center in the Netherlands.
32. The prime focus at Nutricia Research: The prime focus at Nutricia Research is on medical and early life nutrition.