Danone first winner of European Corporate Responsibility Award

(From left to right) Bart Jan Krouwel (jury member), Vladimir Spidla (chairman of the jury), Theo Camps (chairman E-I Consulting Group) and Philippe-Loïc Jacob (secretary general Danone Group)

Utrecht, 6 February 2009 – The European Corporate Responsibility Award launched by the E-I Consulting Group was won by the French company Danone. The award is designed for organisations – large or small, private or (semi-)government – that have implemented corporate responsibility in innovative ways.

The E-I Consulting Group, founded 20 years ago, is a joint venture of prominent European consulting companies who are leaders in their respective national markets. According to research conducted by members of the group, corporate social responsibility (CSR) is gaining in importance within Europe. Achieving business success for a growing number of companies and organisations goes hand in hand with different forms of corporate social responsibility. The European award is designed to stimulate this trend and is also intended to promote the exchange of best practices and innovation within the CSR domain.

An international jury headed by EU Commissioner Vladimir Spidla selected Danone from among twenty one nominees. The winner was selected during a conference organised by the E-I Consulting Group held in Prague. The jury found that Danone demonstrated in the most convincing way that a sound CSR strategy has a positive effect on all business units within the organisation. Specific elements that distinguished Danone’s submission included its positioning to produce healthy products, its carbon-neutral emission goals for its 5 main brands, the formulation of CSR objectives for managers, the sharing of best practices, the development of ‘social enterprises’ in developing countries and its Corporate Responsibility self-assessment programme. Danone employs over 75,000 employees worldwide and achieved sales of €12,776 billion in 2007. The company is a world market leader in fresh dairy products, number 2 in the area of bottled water and baby foods and number 3 in the area of medical foods.

Coco-Mat, a worldwide operating Greek company that manufactures mattresses, received honourable mention.

The plan calls for the next European Corporate Responsibility Award to be presented during the second half of 2010.

Note to the editor

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