We prioritise health
Danone’s mission is to bring health through food and drink to as many people as possible. We have taken the decision to build a health-driven portfolio through our categories: Dairy and Plant-based products, Waters and Specialised Nutrition.
OUR HEALTH COMMITMENTS
IN THE UK & IRELAND
As part of our promise to consumers to prioritise healthy products, in 2023 Danone UK & Ireland launched new health commitments across its dairy, plant-based and beverages portfolio.
Danone UK & Ireland has committed:
- That at least 90% of its product portfolio by sales volume will not be high in sugar, salt or fat (HFSS) as defined by current UK policy and legislation and referred to by relevant authorities* in Ireland.
- That it will never produce a product high in sugar, salt, or fat (HFSS) for children.
- That at least 90% of its portfolio will be rated as “healthy” – receiving a score of at least 3.5 stars out of 5 – within the Health Star Rating Index. The Health Star Rating Index is a rating system which rates the overall nutritional profile of packaged food, and provides a quick, easy, standard way to compare foods.
As part of these commitments, we have also confirmed our intention to implement clear, consistent front of pack nutritional labelling in line with future UK and Ireland legislation.
Sugar reduction
Supporting healther choices
We’re proud of our progress in reducing sugar to give people lower sugar choices.
We are eager to support the implementation of the Irish obesity strategy and are keen to play a collaborative role in addressing this public health issue.
Here in Ireland, we took part in IBEC’s research on the progress of food and drink reformulation alongside 14 other food and drink companies. This report contributed to the store of public knowledge on intakes of sugar, salt, saturated fat, total fat and energy. It analysed how reformulation and new product development by the industry interacts with consumer choices to impact on the nutrient intake of pre-schoolers through to adults. This data is vital to provide a baseline for any future sugar or fat targets be developed by Government. Find out more.
In our yogurt category, we have significantly reduced the sugar content by 15% over the last 10 years. But it’s not just about renovation, we also innovate to bring healthier products to market. We launched Danone yogurt which only uses ingredients that consumers will recognise - milk, live cultures and fruit, all with no added sugar - as well as Light & Free with 0% fat and 0% added sugars. All of our water based drinks are below the soft drinks industry levy and provide a healthier option for consumers as an alternative.
Our Specialised Nutrition consumer portfolio (which includes formula milks and complementary foods) has also undertaken extensive reformulation projects. We have worked hard to lower the naturally occurring sugar content of our baby cereal portfolio, supporting parents in encouraging their babies to develop a taste for balanced food options
We reformulated our Cow & Gate Cereals range which delivered a reduction of 35% average total sugar per ready to feed portion.
Our Aptamil Cereals range followed suit in 2020 delievring a 39% reduction.
A RESEARCH-LED APPROACH TO HEALTHIER ALTERNATIVES
In 2023 Danone unveiled its new international Daniel Carasso Research & Innovation Centre in Paris-Saclay to accelerate research on the future of nutrition.
The cutting-edge research centre will be dedicated to the development and innovation of nutritious, delicious, sustainable products across our dairy, plant based and waters categories.
With world-class researchers in life sciences, fermentation, intestinal microbiota, nutrition and health, the centre includes laboratories and pilot production sites to trial small-scale production of prototypes.
The centre also employs experts in consumer experience and social sciences to help us understand consumer needs and behaviours, as well as specialists in product design and packaging to focus on new solutions.