Danone Ireland’s ‘Specialised Nutrition’ business, whose brands include Nutricia, Aptamil and Cow & Gate, has announced its certification as a B Corp this week.

The achievement marks the full certification of all Danone’s operations in Ireland as well as the UK, building on the accreditation of its other businesses over the past five years.

Danone Dairy Ireland first announced its B Corp accreditation in Ireland in 2019.

What is B Corp accreditation?

B Corp certified businesses are verified by B Lab to meet high standards of social and environmental performance and public transparency – with a proven commitment to balance profit and purpose.

The certification requires businesses to assess their practices across five impact areas: Governance; workers; environment; community; and customers.

The assessment of Specialised Nutrition recognised Danone’s progressive environmental and social practices, resulting in a score of 90.2 across all operations, including manufacturing.

Actions taken by Danone

Actions that contributed to its certification include:

  • Danone’s Wexford facility is the first baby formula production site in the world to be certified carbon neutral by The Carbon Trust resulting in a 70% reduction in its direct carbon footprint since 2010;
  • Danone’s commitment to involving and educating employees in sustainability initiatives through its Nature Champion Programme;
  • Commitment to ensuring 100% of its packaging is reusable, recyclable or compostable by 2025;
  • Company offers all employees shares in the business, and employees are given unlimited volunteering time to give back to the community;
  • Across Danone UK and Ireland, employees have been helping to get critical support to people during the pandemic, including providing over €1.9 million in financial and product donations and getting thousands of nutritious meals to families in need.

Killian Barry, managing director of Danone Ireland said: “Our Specialised Nutrition business, which includes our Wexford and Macroom factories, becoming B Corp certified is a significant achievement – and one we hope will inspire other companies and manufacturing sites to engage with the B Corp values and join the community of like-minded businesses.

“Despite ongoing challenges throughout the pandemic, we have pushed ourselves to go further for our patients and our consumers.

“We’re incredibly proud to have this recognised through B Corp certification – the culmination of a lot of hard work by employees across all levels.”

James Mayer, president for Danone UK and Ireland added: “It’s fantastic to witness the accelerating growth of the B Corp Community, both in Ireland and the UK, and around the world.

“Danone has been inspiring healthy habits that nourish life for over a century, so the B Corp philosophy directly aligns with our own purpose and vision for sustainable growth.

“There has never been a more critical time for greater action from responsible businesses. And more than ever, people want to buy from, work for, invest in and partner with businesses they trust to make a positive impact.”

Danone

Danone is a global food, drink and healthcare company whose brands include household names such as Actimel; Activia; Alpro; Aptamil; Cow & Gate; Evian; and Volvic.

In Ireland, Danone employs a total of almost 700 people, including at two supply points in Macroom and Wexford and offices in Dublin with a total of 2000 employees across eight locations in the UK and Ireland.