The story
Founded by Isaac Carasso in 1919, in Barcelona.1
Birth of Danone and creation of Gervais Danone (1919–1969)
At the end of World War I in Europe, many children suffered from intestinal disorders linked to poor hygiene conditions. Isaac Carasso, a merchant, took an interest in the research of Élie Metchnikoff, a researcher at the Pasteur Institute and Nobel laureate in 1908. This research focused on the benefits of yoghurts and lactic ferments on health, highlighting in particular their use in treating intestinal disorders. Isaac Carasso was already familiar with the virtues of: in Thessaloniki, where he was from, the product was widely available and sold in the streets by the kilogram. He decided to introduce it in Spain, incorporating lactic cultures on the advice of doctors. The Pasteur Institute supplied the cultures.
In 1919 in a small workshop in Barcelona, Isaac Carasso launched yoghurt production. The yoghurts were made with fresh milk and delivered the following day. The brand was initially called "Danon", after the Catalan nickname of his son "petit Daniel". However, a proper name could not serve as a trade name under Spanish law. The founder added an "e" to register the brand, which became "Danone". In 1923, the Barcelona College of Physicians officially recognized the properties of yoghurt. The pots were sold in pharmacies on doctors' recommendations, and later in dairy shops.
After commercial studies in Marseille and a bacteriology placement at the Institut Pasteur, Daniel Carasso, then aged 20, launched the brand in France in 1929 by founding the Société Parisienne du yoghourt Danone. The first factory opened in 1932 in Levallois-Perret. The company progressively developed its distribution network in the Paris region, contributing to the spread of yoghurt into everyday consumption. The product range expanded rapidly. In 1937, Dany, the first fruit yoghurt, was launched. Fruit-flavored yoghurts were commercialized in 1953, smooth-style yoghurts in 1963, and gelled varieties in 1966.
In 1942 the occupation of France forced Daniel Carasso to take refuge in the United States. He continued developing the brand, acquired a yoghurt manufacturer, and launched Dannon Milk Products. On the advice of French publicist Raymond Loewy, the brand's spelling was Americanized to avoid mispronunciation. Dannon Inc. was incorporated in the United States.
Back in France, Daniel Carasso sold his American company to Beatrice Foods (it would be repurchased by Danone France in 1981) and sought to strengthen Danone. The company merged in 1967 with Fromageries Gervais to form Gervais-Danone.
From yoghurt to its jar (1970–1977)
In the early 1970s Gervais-Danone acquired numerous pasta and canned food brands: Milliat Frères, Panzani, Garbit, Petitjean, and Lhuissier, thereby becoming the leading pasta producer in France.
At the same time Boussois-Souchon-Neuvesel (BSN), initially present in the packaging market, saw its attempted takeover of glassmaker Saint-Gobain fail. Its chairman Antoine Riboud decided to reorient the company's strategy by diversifying into the food industry, with the objective of moving from packaging production to food products. BSN took control of the Évian and Badoit bottled mineral water brands, Blédina, and the Kanterbräu and Kronenbourg breweries, becoming a major player in the beer, mineral water, and infant nutrition sectors.
In 1973 BSN merged with Gervais Danone. The new entity was named BSN-Gervais-Danone. The group's main activities at that point were fresh products, beverages, pasta, and prepared meals. Antoine Riboud, who initiated the operation, took over its leadership.
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Refocusing on food, diversification and group expansion (1978–1995)
In 1978 BSN-Gervais Danone acquired the Belgian brewery Alken. The following year, in the wake of the oil crisis, the company divested its flat glass activities and refocused on food. The group expanded and extended its activities across Europe. In 1980, it acquired the food branch of Générale Occidentale, specializing in grocery and confectionery, and owner of numerous brands including Carambar, Liebig, Vandamme, La Pie qui Chante, and Maille. BSN-Gervais Danone became France's leading food company.
In 1983 the group dropped the BSN-Gervais Danone name and simplified it to BSN. Despite this change, the fresh dairy products inherited from Gervais Danone remained a core activity.
In 1987 BSN entered the biscuit market by acquiring Générale Biscuit, owner of the LU brand and present in several European countries. Two years later, the group acquired several European subsidiaries of the American company Nabisco, including Belin. It thereby became the leading biscuit producer in Europe and one of the principal global players. The group's turnover at that time stood at 48.7 billion francs.
In 1993 BSN acquired Vivagel and combined its food activities with those of the Saint Louis Group group (Marie, William Saurin, La Belle Chaurienne) within a joint subsidiary named Panzalim. Following Saint-Louis's withdrawal in 1996, BSN recovered its full portfolio of brands.
As its international presence grew, the BSN name remained little-known to the general public – particularly as it was already used by a bank in Spain, a textile company in the United States, and a television channel in Japan. In a context of globalization, the group chose to leverage its most visible brand, Danone, which alone accounted for a quarter of turnover. In 1994, BSN changed its name to "Groupe Danone", represented by "the child with a star". The company at that point owned nearly 300 brands.
Refocusing on three areas and the beginning of internationalization (1996–2006)
Franck Riboud, CEO of Danone from 1996 to 2014, chairman of the board of directors from 2014 to 2017, and honorary chairman since 2017.
In 1996 Antoine Riboud, chairman of the Danone group, retired at the age of 77 and stepped down from his position. His son Franck succeeded him. This year marked the beginning of a period of refocusing for the company around health and healthy eating, and an acceleration of its international development.
Following several acquisitions in emerging markets, the Danone group acquired 51% of Hangzhou Wahaha Group, the leading non-alcoholic beverage producer in China. Zong Qinghou, the company's founder, became chairman of Danone-Wahaha, which held nearly 39 joint ventures. All products were marketed under the Wahaha brand. Through this partnership, the Danone group generated three-quarters of its Chinese activity and 10% of its global sales.
In the years that followed, the company divested more than half of its grocery activities and all of its confectionery: Panzani, Amora Maille, and William Saurin were sold to Paribas Affaires Industrielles; Marie to Uniq plc; Liebig to Campbell's; and La Pie qui Chante, Carambar, and Vandamme to Cadbury.
At the same time the company accelerated its internationalization strategy in emerging markets and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1998. That same year, the group was the official supplier of dairy products at the FIFA World Cup. Three brands were highlighted: Danone, Évian, and LU. In 1999, the group divested its packaging and beer operations, including the sale of Kronenbourg and Alken-Maes breweries to Scottish & Newcastle in 2000. That same year, Danone chose to establish a research and development center in Palaiseau, in the Paris-Saclay scientific and technology cluster.
In the years that followed, Danone continued its development in emerging markets, notably in Latin America (Uruguay, Chile), Asia (China, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, and Vietnam), North Africa (Morocco, Algeria, Egypt), and the Middle East (Israel, Saudi Arabia), as well as in North America with the acquisition of Stonyfield Farm, a global leader in organic yoghurt.
On 10 January 2001 the newspaper Le Monde revealed the forthcoming closure of two LU factories. On 29 March, Danone announced the reorganization of its biscuit operations in Europe, aimed at rationalizing industrial capacity. The plan provided in particular for the closure of two LU factories in France, in Calais and Ris-Orangis, as well as the elimination of 1,780 jobs across Europe, including 570 in France. This decision provoked significant social and political mobilization in France, even as the company was profitable. Strikes, demonstrations, and calls to boycott Danone products were organized, relayed by certain elected officials, trade unions, and associations. The movement attracted considerable public attention, though it also generated divisions. The affair gave rise to a notable media controversy in spring 2001, affecting the group's image. It was also accompanied by legal proceedings related to the creation of critical websites against Danone: after an initial conviction, a court of appeal reaffirmed in 2003 the primacy of freedom of expression in this context.
Antoine Riboud died on 5 May 2002, aged 83.
In July 2005 a rumor spread about a possible hostile takeover of Danone by PepsiCo. The story, broken by Challenges magazine, claimed that PepsiCo had acquired 3% of Danone's capital. Politicians from both left and right, as well as trade unions, rallied to defend the Danone group, describing it as "an industrial jewel". Pepsi denied any such intention, but the affair caused a significant stir, and the French government announced it would do everything possible to protect the Danone group. The Financial Markets Authority (AMF) announced that PepsiCo had certified on 24 July that it was not preparing a bid for the group.
At the same time Danone found that alongside the 39 joint-venture structures, some sixty factories and distribution companies were producing and selling beverages illegally under the Wahaha brand. The French group accused its Chinese partner of failing to respect the non-compete clauses. It then attempted to take control of these subsidiaries, but was rebuffed by Zong Qinghou, who denounced the intrusion of foreign companies in China. Wahaha alleged that the French company was aware of the situation and accused it of seeking too large a share in the joint ventures. Danone entered into negotiations and then took the matter to court in 2007. French President Nicolas Sarkozy even raised the case with Chinese President Hu Jintao during an official visit. In 2009, an amicable agreement was reached between the two parties. The Danone group exited the joint venture and sold its shares to its former partner. Following this separation, Danone left the non-alcoholic beverage market in China.
In 2006 Franck Riboud refocused Danone's activities on its three most promising businesses: fresh dairy products, bottled mineral water, and biscuits. These three sectors alone represented 85% of sales.
Continued internationalization around dairy products, water, and infant nutrition (2007–2019)
In 2007 Danone refocused once again and divested its biscuit activity — which included the Tuc, Belin, and LU brands – selling it to Kraft (subsequently renamed Mondelēz International). 7 July marked the end of the cooperation between Eden and Danone around the Château d'eau business.
Having divested all of the LU assets, the group launched a takeover bid for the Dutch company Numico on 8 July.
Danone thus acquired one of the global leaders in infant nutrition and medical nutrition. The transaction was completed for €12.3 billion. On 29 October, the Danone board of directors approved the sale of its Biscuits and cereal products division to Kraft Foods for €6.3 billion. From that point on, the company organized itself around four activities: fresh dairy products, water, infant nutrition, and medical nutrition.
Daniel Carasso, then honorary chairman of the company, died on 17 May 2009 at the age of 103.
On 18 June 2010 Danone partnered with Unimilk, one of Russia's leading milk producers. Together, they merged their fresh dairy product activities in Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and Belarus. This joint venture gave rise to the number one dairy products company in that region. Russia became the fifth most important market for the French company.
In 2010 the group also acquired Immédia, the third-largest smoothie producer in France, as well as the American company Medical Nutrition. With its $16 million in turnover, Medical Nutrition joined Danone's nutrition division, which that same year generated $70 million in North America. The objective was to strengthen Danone's position in health products and medical nutrition in particular, a fast-growing market. In April 2012, Danone was a candidate to acquire Pfizer's infant nutrition business, but that activity was ultimately sold to Nestlé. Like medical nutrition, infant nutrition was growing strongly in emerging markets.
In 2011 the share of sales achieved in emerging markets crossed a milestone, reaching 51%.
In June 2012 the group announced that it was raising its stake in Centrale Laitière, the Moroccan leader in dairy products – with whom Danone had worked since 1953 – to 67%.
In October 2012 Danone partnered with the Abraaj investment fund to acquire 49% of Fan Milk, a company that manufactures and distributes frozen dairy products and juices in Ghana, Nigeria, Togo, Burkina Faso, Benin, and Ivory Coast.
On 18 July 2014 Danone announced the acquisition of 40% of the capital of the Kenyan group Brookside, the leading dairy products group in East Africa.
On 20 May 2013 Danone announced a 4.0% strategic stake in Mengniu, the number one dairy products company in China, through an agreement with COFCO (China's leading state-owned food company and principal shareholder of Mengniu). In February 2014, Danone announced that it had raised its stake in Mengniu from 4.0% to 9.9%, for €486 million. Danone became the company's second largest shareholder. In parallel, in May 2013, a joint venture was created between Danone and Mengniu to develop the fresh dairy product category.
In August 2013 a false alert regarding the toxicity of ingredients in infant milks sold in Asia created a climate of panic.
In February 2014 Danone mandated investment bank JP Morgan with a view to divesting its medical nutrition division, valued at approximately €3 billion, before reaffirming its four core businesses (Fresh Dairy Products, Water, Infant Nutrition, and Medical Nutrition) in December 2014.
On 1 October 2014 Franck Riboud handed over the general management of the company to Emmanuel Faber.
On 31 October 2014 Danone, Mengniu, and Yashili announced that they had signed an agreement under which Danone participated in a reserved capital increase of the Chinese company Yashili for an amount of €437 million. Danone then held 25.0% of Yashili's capital.
In November 2015 Danone announced that it had concluded a definitive agreement with the Chinese group Yashili and its parent company Mengniu for the sale of the Dumex infant nutrition brand, for a price of €150 million. Dumex's sales in China had been significantly below their early 2013 levels, and the brand had been subject to a value write-down of €398 million.
In June 2016 Danone announced the acquisition of a 40% stake in Michel et Augustin. In July 2016, Danone announced the acquisition of WhiteWave Foods for $12.5 billion including assumed debt. This American company, specializing in organic dairy products and plant-based products, owns the Horizon Organic, Silk, and Earthbound Farm brands. In April 2017, to obtain competition authority clearance for the WhiteWave acquisition, Danone announced the sale of Stonyfield. In July 2017, Danone sold Stonyfield to Lactalis for $875 million (€768 million), to comply with requirements from US competition authorities.
In February 2018 Danone sold a 14% stake in Yakult for €1.5 billion, retaining only a 7% interest.
In April 2019 Danone announced the sale of Earthbound Farm, an American brand specializing in organic salads, to Taylor Farms.
In October 2020 Danone announced the sale of its residual 6.6% stake in Yakult Honsha for approximately €500 million, while retaining its joint ventures and partnership with the company.
Internal reorganization and governance crisis (2020–2021)
In November 2020 management announced, as part of its Local First plan, the elimination of 1,500 to 2,000 positions, including nearly 500 in France, to increase profitability and achieve €1 billion in savings by 2023. This prompted sharp criticism as the group simultaneously announced that it was highly profitable and had just returned €1.4 billion to shareholders.
In late January 2021 the arrival of investment fund Bluebell Capital as a shareholder of Danone called into question the presence of Emmanuel Faber at the head of Danone. In a letter sent to all shareholders in November 2020, Bluebell Capital deplored the "disappointing" stock market performance and argued that under Emmanuel Faber's chairmanship, "the right balance between shareholder value creation and sustainability issues" had not been respected.
In February 2021 Danone announced the acquisition of Earth Island, an American company specializing in plant-based products.
On 1 March 2021 the decision to once again separate the roles of chairman and chief executive was taken by the group's board of directors following pressure from Bluebell Capital and Artisan Partners. Both funds called on 3 March 2021 for Faber's removal from the chairmanship.
In March 2021 Emmanuel Faber was dismissed from his position, with shareholders considering that the company was becoming less profitable due to its corporate social and environmental responsibility policy.
In early April 2021 Danone's reorganization plan was launched: it provided for the elimination of 1,850 positions worldwide, including 458 in France. A few weeks later, the general meeting approved the payment of a dividend of €1.94 per share for 2020 results, representing a total of €1.3 billion returned to shareholders. By end of June 2021, the full scope of the redundancy plan was revealed: 1,200 positions were eliminated, notably among senior management, managers, sales staff, and assistants. In parallel, 770 positions were to be created.
Renew strategy and refocusing of the brand portfolio around health (since 2021)
In September 2021 Antoine de Saint-Affrique was officially appointed chief executive officer of Danone. This appointment came a few months after that of Gilles Schnepp as chairman of the board of directors. This governance change came in the context of performance deemed insufficient by a portion of shareholders and financial markets.
In March 2022 de Saint-Affrique presented his Renew Danone plan, which he intended to enable the company to return to profitable and sustainable growth. The plan rested notably on more active portfolio management, stronger financial discipline, and a refocusing on categories identified as priorities, particularly specialized nutrition, health, and certain high-value-added proteins. This strategic direction translated into several asset reallocation decisions during the year. In May in particular, Danone announced the end of its partnership with the Chinese group Mengniu, while recovering control of the Dumex Baby Food infant nutrition brand.
During the same period the group temporarily increased its deliveries of infant formula to the United States to address a national shortage, at the request of US authorities.
In February 2023 Danone inaugurated a new international research and innovation center on the Paris-Saclay plateau at a cost of €100 million. The construction of the site was part of a property and industrial project aimed at consolidating research and development activities previously spread across multiple sites.
From Wikipedia’s article on Danone, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5