Our

history

Danone in the UK

Danone in the UK, is a relative youngster to Group Danone, but our spectacular growth has secured our role as vital to our worldwide success.

Danone UK Ltd

Officially created in 1990 as a branch of Danone Belgium, we hit UK shores as a company in our own right with the launch of Actimel, in 1999.

At the heart of our success, we tapped into an explosive need for functional foods and today, Actimel is Britain’s best-selling probiotic drinking yogurt. Our local success continued to grow with the introduction of our other brands, Activia and Shape.

‘In 2010 we significantly out performed our most ambitious targets. We have grown turnover, market share and increased penetration substantially. I am confident that our model for growth will enable us to continue sustained growth in the future’, says current Managing Director, Bruno Fromage.

Danone Waters UK & Ireland (Danone Waters)

Over the past 25 years, since Evian was first sold, bottled water has really established itself in the habits of the British population! In the mid ‘80s people drank 5 litres of bottled water per person per year where as today, this consumption has risen to over 35 litres.

Why? There is no doubt that we are becoming more health conscious as a nation, and many of us recognise that drinking more water, often in place of sugary alternatives, is a simple but decisive step towards a healthier lifestyle.

Evian and Volvic, our trademark natural mineral waters and their flavoured variants, have been at the forefront of this consumption growth and are the top selling bottled water brands in the country.

‘In spite of difficult ‘winds’ within the industry - the economic recession, volatile weather and media debates - Danone Waters has achieved growth due to the outstanding efforts of our teams to grow both our brands and the natural mineral water industry as a whole’, comments Adam Grant, Managing Director. Today, we are market leader in bottled waters.