01 Innovate:
thinking outside the box
At Danone, daily interaction with our markets sparks innovation and helps make all four of our business lines leaders in their field.
No innovation without a perfect quality of
execution
Three key innovation drivers
With competition increasingly fierce, innovation is critical in maintaining and strengthening Danone’s leading positions.
We continually reinvent our group by leveraging three key drivers:
1. thinking locally and promoting local initiatives
Danone favours a decentralized structure and encourages its teams in the field to develop initiatives in line with local habits and expectations. The most successful local experiments are replicated in other countries.
2. anticipating consumer needs
Looking at its markets, Danone is developing new product categories to meet and even anticipate consumer expectations, keeping step with changing lifestyles.
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3. addressing public health issues
Our four business lines are committed to offering tasty products that meet everyone’s nutritional needs and respond to every country’s public health issues.
Kiss Pot
Modern design for
a pot that makes
eating easier
In 2011, a new yogurt pot dubbed the “ Kiss ” pot (for “ Keep it simple and safe ”) appeared on store shelves in Spain. Successfully tested on the Activia range, this packaging will be extended to all Danone yogurt ranges in several European countries in 2012. The Kiss pot is gradually replacing the traditional “ RK ” pot introduced by the group in 1978 and quickly adopted by all manufacturers.
A few months after the Kiss pot appeared on store shelves in Spain:
- + 4.3 % of Activia Nature sales
- +7.7%for Fruit Activia
CARBON FOOTPRINT
-27.5% CO2 emissions by year-end 2011 putting our 30% target for 2008-2012 well within reach.
SAP and Danone:
innovative partnership for
CO2 reduction
Black shelves
Rethinking store
displays to enhance
the buying experience
To give fresh dairy and ultra-fresh sales a boost, Danone France studied in-store behaviors—how consumers approached displays. Using this data, Danone France re-designed its coldchain management, the structure and arrangement of displays, and even lighting. Outcome no. 1: existing ultra-fresh displays, virtually unchanged for 40 years, were replaced with “ Black shelves ” designed specifically to enhance the buying experience.
In only one month, sales in a pilot store jumped 5.77%, up from previous monthly increases averaging 1.93%. Danone France proceeded to install the new shelves in some 100 stores, and Danone Spain has followed suit.
Aqua
Caps against counterfeiters
After five years of research, Aqua—leader for mineral water, Aqua holds 60% of the market (with Mizone brand)—has developed a new top that protects against the contaminations and allows counterfeit jugs to be spotted.
Learn more The indonesian TV filmBonafont
Micro-factory: a reinvented industrial model
Bonafont, Mexico’s leading bottled water brand, had to reinvent its industrial model to expand its market in the remote areas of a vast territory spanning two million square kilometres.
The subsidiary opted for an innovative modular solution: micro-plants. Easy to set up, these small units make it possible to increase production capacity without shrinking margins or expanding its carbon footprint.
After opening the first site in December 2010, micro-factories continue to be set up in other regions. Target: by 2015, the average distance travelled by a pallet will be reduced by two-thirds.
A micro-factory means:
of CO2 emissions
Three decisive criteria:
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the presence of ample, good-quality water resources
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proximity to distribution platforms and warehouses
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strategic location, with a skilled workforce, access points, limited environmental and safety risks...
AN INFORMATION PROGRAMME ON BABY MILK
Innovating to address
public health issues
in Turkey
To promote its innovations and remind the public of the nutritional quality of its products, Danone is counting on a major communications campaign centred on public health issues. In Turkey in 2011, with the support from local authorities, the group hosted an information programme for young mothers, also geared toward health professionals.
Objective: to raise awareness of the importance for children aged 6 to 36 months of continuing to consume at least 500ml of milk daily, once finished breastfeeding. While promoting and reminding the target publics of the specific nutritional needs of young children, the campaign has helped boost the overall Turkish infant formulas market.
LiveliHoods
An innovative carbon
offsetting fund
Created under Danone’s leadership in 2011, the Livelihoods Fund offers an innovative approach to carbon offsetting by funding projects with high social and environmental value. Backed by Crédit Agricole, Schneider Electric, CDC Climate (deposit office) and La Poste, the Fund aims to generate lasting improvement in the living conditions of poor rural communities through ecosystem restoration programmes.
Learn more www.livelihoods.eu