Danone to Sell Stonyfield Organic Yogurt

The sale of Stonyfield Organic Yogurt to be done as a part of finalization process of its acquisition  of WhiteWave

United States: French dairy company, Danone has announced that it will be selling Stonyfield, the world’s largest organic yogurt brand, as part of the process of finalizing its acquisition of WhiteWave, the parent company of both Horizon organic milk and Wallaby organic yogurt.

Danone’s plan of Stonyfield’s divestment is expected to permit the company to close its acquisition of WhiteWave and allow the company to proceed as quickly as possible with the integration of WhiteWave and reap the full benefits of the announced synergies.

Danone is one of the world's leading food companies, producing several dairy brands, baby foods and Evian water. WhiteWave, which went public in 2012, makes Horizon brand organic dairy products, coffee creamers and plant-based dairy alternatives such as Silk brand soy and almond milk. The acquisition is set to worth around USD10.4 billion

TechSci Research depicts that Danone’s plan to sell Stonyfiled comes from an agreement with the anti-trust department of the U.S. Department of Justice, as the company also owns a 21 percent stake in the Lifeway organic kefir brand, apart from Stonyfield brand. Acquiring WhiteWave would enable the company to own other Whitewave subsidiaries such as Wallaby and Horizon Organic yogurts to its market share, which would have resulted in Danone having a complete monopoly over the organic dairy industry in the United Sates.  

According to a recent report published by TechSci Research, “Global Organic Dairy Products Market By Product Type, By Region, Competition Forecast and Opportunities, 2011 - 2021”, global market for organic dairy products is expected to grow at a CAGR of over 11% during 2016-2021, on the back of surging investments in organic dairy products market along with increasing use of bio-fertilizers for cultivation of organic grass for feeding the cattle. In addition, implementation of favorable government policies, online availability of organic dairy products facilitating easy sale and supply to consumers, is expected to augmented demand for organic dairy products, worldwide. Demand for organic dairy products is predominantly concentrated in Europe and North America as of 2015 and these regions are also anticipated to continue dominating the market during the forecast period as well. In 2015, global dairy products market was dominated by organic drinking milk segment.