SOCIAL INNOVATION

Performance

SOCIAL INNOVATION

Danone contributes to four funds through which it invests in new business models for a healthier future.

  • Danone Communities invests in Social Businesses addressing access to safe drinking water and fight against malnutrition. The Fund has been investing in businesses created by innovative social entrepreneurs and enables the local development of products and services impacting the daily life of a million people.

 

  • The Danone Ecosystem Fund intends to co-create general interest project to strengthen and develop the activities of partners in Danone’s ecosystem including stakeholders such as smallholder farmers, micro-entrepreneurs, caregivers and waste-pickers. The Fund supports projects codesigned by a local Danone subsidiary and a non-profit partner, addressing both a social and economic challenge, but also environmental or public health issues. The Fund carries out actions in employment, skills and employability, access to knowledge and micro-entrepreneurship.

 

  • The Livelihoods Carbon Fund supports the efforts of disadvantaged rural communities in developing countries to restore their natural ecosystems and to improve their livelihoods by increasing food security and incomes; contributing to climate action. Following the results of the first Livelihoods Carbon Fund, the investors created in 2018 a 2nd compartment of the Livelihoods Carbon Fund to accelerate their actions for climate and for most vulnerable populations.

 

  • The second fund created by Livelihoods, Livelihoods Fund for Family Farming (L3F), offers companies innovative solutions to build a win-win relationship with small producers. L3F projects allow farmers to adopt more efficient and eco-friendlier agricultural practices while being more efficiently connected to the value chain of companies, improving their incomes and their living conditions, while securing the supply for businesses. L3F also answers to challenges of environmental degradation, climate change and rural poverty.

 

 

Key performance indicators of these different funds in 2018 are presented below.

 

 

Social businesses supported by the fund

Danone Communities invested in 10 social businesses, located in 14 different countries (versus 12 in 2017).

MUTUAL INVESTMENT FUND PERFORMANCE

5.34%

of the total performance of the mutual investment fund (SICAV)

The indicator refers to the total performance net of fees over 5 years (versus 9.25% in 2017).

 

MEASURING THE COMMITMENT OF DANONE'S EMPLOYEES

30% 

of Danone Communities Fund is held by Danone’s employees (versus 25% in 2017).

Danone employees in France participate in the Danone Communities project by investing in the mutual investment fund (SICAV) through the danone.communities company investment fund (Fonds Commun de Placement d’Entreprise - FCPE) as part of the Group Savings Plan. By the end of 2018, 56% of Danone France employees had subscribed to the FCPE Danone Communities (versus 55% in 2017).

 

 

Since 2008, Danone employees invested 22.4 million euros (versus 19.8 million euros in 2017).*

 

SOCIAL

1.1 million beneficiaries in total


The indicator refers to the total number of the social businesses beneficiaries supported by Danone Communities, in regard to the 14 countries in the Fund (versus 1 million in 2017).

 

800,000 beneficiaries with access to safe drinking water in 2018


The indicator refers to the total number of the water access social businesses beneficiaries (versus 700,000 in 2017) supported by Danone Communities. 

 

300,000 beneficiaries in the fight against malnutrition and poverty 


The indicator refers to the total number of nutrition social businesses beneficiaries (same value in 2017) supported by Danone Communities.

General

Number of active projects

In 2018, the Danone Ecosystem Fund had a total number of 85 projects in its portfolio (versus 71 in 2017), among which 45 were active during the year (versus 42 in 2017).

Partners

Total funding

SOCIAL IMPACT

Number of jobs created

This indicator refers to the creation of positions with a contract or a formalized micro-entrepreneurship status and with an employment of at least 6 months per year and occupied at the reporting date.

Number of professionally empowered people

This indicator refers to empowerment—a process that enables people to boost their employability and social & economic inclusion. It includes people with increased or secured revenue, people who received training, people with access to social benefits, people who have benefitted from a micro-credit service, people with better working conditions, people who have benefitted from a social or professional insertion program, people who received a donation in kind, and people with access to external expertise.

Number of women professionally empowered

This indicator refers to empowerment—a process that enables women to boost their employability and social & economic inclusion. It includes women with increased or secured revenue, women trained, women with access to social benefits, women who have benefitted from a micro-credit service, women with better working conditions, women who have benefitted from a social or professional insertion program, women who received a donation in kind.

Number of indirect beneficiaries

This indicator refers to people receiving an indirect benefit specific to the project (family members benefiting from increased or secured revenue, people made more aware of nutrition, etc.), excluding people professionally empowered.

Impact on nature

Tons of PET (polyethylene terephthalate) plastic collected annually

NUMBER OF ACTIVE PROJECTS

By the end of 2018, 9 projects were active within the Fund. The different categories of projects are the following: 3 ecosystem restoration projects, 3 agroforestry projects and 3 rural energy projects (same as in 2017).

TOTAL INVESTMENT VOLUME

The Livelihoods Carbon Fund is financed by 10 companies: Groupe Caisse des Dépôts, Crédit Agricole SA, Danone, Firmenich, Hermès, Groupe La Poste, Michelin, Schneider Electric, SAP, Voyageurs du Monde. The objective is to reach 40 million euros of investment.

SOCIAL IMPACT

People positively impacted since 2011

Number of people whose livelihoods are improved thanks to projects' benefits: more resources available (fish, food, cash crops, etc.) and more resilient ecosystems (restoration of agricultural land and forests, barriers against seawater, etc.). The objective is to positively impact 1.5 million people by 2020.

Households equipped with efficient cookstoves since 2011

In addition to mitigating deforestation, efficient cookstoves have direct impact on women's lives: less exposure to toxic smoke and burns, less time needed for wood collecting and cooking. The objective to reach 120,000 equipped households was achieved in 2017.

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT

Trees planted since 2011

In rural communities, people depend on forests' ecosystems for their subsistence. Forest restoration improves their livelihoods (more natural resources available) and has positive impacts on climate change (CO2 sequestration, natural barriers, soil regeneration, etc.). The aim is to plant 130 million trees by 2020.

Hectares restored since 2011

Agroforestry, for example, regenerates lands by improving soil fertility—allowing small farmers to produce enough food and cash crops to improve their livelihoods. The objective set is 47,000 hectares restored by 2020.

Tons of carbon emissions avoided or sequestered since 2014

Trees sequester CO2, thus helping mitigate climate change. The aim is to sequester 10 million tons of CO2 over 20 years, by 2032.

 

€ 55 million 

committed by 8 companies (in 2018)

 

Objectives over a 20-year span:

  • 1.5 million beneficiaries in Africa, Asia & Latin America
  • 170 million trees to be planted
  • 13 million tons of CO2 to be sequestered or avoided

 

 

7 active projects 

In 2018, the Livelihoods Fund for Family Farming had seven active projects (versus 5 in 2017).

 

€18.4 M already engaged

By the end of 2018, the total investment volume was up to 11.4 million euros (versus €6.8 M in 2017) with 7 million euros provided by co-funders. The long-term objective is to mobilize 120 million euros.

 

1,500 farms connected to markets

By the end of 2018, 1,500 farms were connected to markets or supply chains of investors in the funds (with a target of 10,000 farms with the projects currently in the fund’s portfolio).

The long-term objective is to reach 200,000 farms.

 

13,900 people reached

(with a target of 44,000 people reached with the projects currently in the fund’s portfolio)

 

2,200 people directly empowered

By the end of 2018, 2,200 people were directly empowered by the projects (with a target of 20,000 people with the projects currently in the fund’s portfolio)