Danone S.A.
Acquisitions
4
Major Deals Covered
$24.8B
Disclosed Deal Value
Danone's largest disclosed acquisition here is WhiteWave Foods Company for $12.5B in 2017. This page covers 4 major deals from 2007 to 2026, each with its price where disclosed and the reason behind it.
| Company | Year | Price | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|
| Royal Numico N.V. | 2007 | $12.3B | Add baby food and medical nutrition (Aptamil, Nutrilon, Nutricia) and refocus Danone on health. |
| WhiteWave Foods Company | 2017 | $12.5B | Build global leadership in plant-based foods and scale up in North America. |
| Kate Farms | 2025 | Undisclosed | Expand U.S. medical nutrition with plant-based, organic shakes and tube-feeding formulas. |
| Huel | 2026 | Undisclosed | Enter complete-nutrition and meal-replacement products in functional nutrition. |
2026
Enter complete-nutrition and meal-replacement products in functional nutrition.
Agreed March 23, 2026, cleared by the UK CMA in August 2026 and completed in September 2026. Danone did not disclose the price; press reports cite about $1.13 billion (EUR1 billion).
Extends Danone's functional nutrition portfolio alongside high-protein dairy.
2025
Expand U.S. medical nutrition with plant-based, organic shakes and tube-feeding formulas.
Danone completed the acquisition of a majority stake on July 1, 2025. Price not disclosed.
Central to Danone's plan to scale U.S. medical nutrition in Renew Danone Chapter 2.
2017
$12.5B
Build global leadership in plant-based foods and scale up in North America.
Added Silk, Alpro, So Delicious, Vega and Horizon Organic. Value shown is the roughly USD12.5 billion enterprise value including debt.
Silk and Alpro remain core plant-based brands; Horizon Organic and Wallaby were sold to Platinum Equity in 2024.
2007
$12.3B
Add baby food and medical nutrition (Aptamil, Nutrilon, Nutricia) and refocus Danone on health.
Created the Specialized Nutrition category, now Danone's highest-margin business. Value shown in euros.
Numico's brands and Utrecht research base remain central to Danone's nutrition business.
Renew Danone Chapter 2 targets mid-single-digit like-for-like growth by scaling high-growth health platforms: high-protein yogurt and drinks, adult medical nutrition in the U.S. and Europe, gut-health and microbiome products, and functional nutrition. Bolt-on deals support this: majority control of plant-based medical nutrition brand Kate Farms (closed July 2025), The Akkermansia Company (June 2025) and UK meal-replacement brand Huel (agreed March 2026, cleared by the UK CMA in August 2026 and completed in September 2026). Weaker or non-core assets have been sold, including Horizon Organic and Wallaby in the U.S. and the Russian EDP business.
Danone makes money by selling branded, health-positioned food and drinks through supermarkets, pharmacies, hospitals and online channels in more than 120 markets. Essential Dairy and Plant-Based (yogurts, fermented drinks, coffee creamers, plant-based milks) is the largest category by sales; Specialized Nutrition (infant formula and adult medical nutrition) earns the highest margins and is partly sold through healthcare professionals; Waters (Evian, Volvic, Aqua, Mizone) adds premium and functional hydration. Growth comes from a mix of volume/mix and pricing: in 2025 volume/mix contributed +2.7 points and price +1.8 points of the 4.5% like-for-like increase.
Danone completed the purchase of WhiteWave Foods in April 2017 for about USD12.5 billion including debt, adding Silk, Alpro, So Delicious, Vega, International Delight and Horizon Organic and making it a global leader in plant-based foods.
In 2007 Danone bought Dutch group Royal Numico for about $13.9 billion (EUR12.3 billion), adding infant nutrition brands such as Aptamil, Nutrilon and Cow & Gate and medical nutrition under Nutricia. This created what is now Danone's Specialized Nutrition category.
Danone sold its LU biscuit business to Kraft Foods in 2007 for about $5.99 billion (EUR5.3 billion), exiting biscuits to focus on dairy, water and specialized nutrition, the same year it bought Numico.
Danone bought Medical Nutrition USA in 2010 to expand its U.S. presence in medical nutrition, adding protein supplements used in clinical and long-term care settings.
Danone's venture arm, Danone Manifesto Ventures, invested in Harmless Harvest, a U.S. organic coconut water brand, as part of its program of minority and growth investments in health-focused food start-ups.
In 2024 Danone sold its U.S. organic dairy brands Horizon Organic and Wallaby to Platinum Equity, exiting a lower-margin organic milk business to focus on yogurt, creamers and plant-based products.
Danone favors bolt-on deals that strengthen its health platforms: Kate Farms in U.S. medical nutrition (2025), The Akkermansia Company in microbiome science (2025) and Huel in functional nutrition (completed September 2026).
Danone Manifesto Ventures is Danone's corporate venture fund. It takes stakes in early- and growth-stage food and beverage companies, with publicly reported investments including Forager Project and India's Epigamia.
Recognizing the massive global shift away from dairy milk, Danone executed an incredibly aggressive $12.5 billion acquisition of WhiteWave Foods in 2017, instantly giving them absolute dominance over the booming plant-based milk market with brands like Silk and Alpro.
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