Danone’s Q3 sales fell slightly, plant-based products increased by 20%

On the evening of October 19, Danone disclosed its 2020 third-quarter performance report. Sales revenue for the quarter reached 5.821 billion euros, a decrease of 2.5% year-on-year. Among them, the business of basic dairy products and drinking water and beverages rebounded, which drove the quarter-on-quarter growth in sales revenue.

In the third quarter, the sales revenue of basic dairy products and plant-based products increased significantly. In particular, plant-based products not only achieved double-digit growth for three consecutive quarters, but also reached nearly 20% growth in the third quarter.

Due to the high base in the same period last year, China's milk powder business experienced a double-digit decline. This led to a 5.7% drop in global special nutrition sales revenue in the third quarter, of which both sales and sales fell by about 2.9%. Unfavorable factors include poor channel logistics caused by the epidemic (a sharp drop in cross-border milk powder sales), and the impact of panic buying and hoarding. However, driven by the platinum version of high-end products, the Atami brand continues to maintain a good upward trend in the market share of Chinese e-commerce platforms and maternal and child stores.

Due to the various uncertainties brought about by the epidemic and continued market turmoil, Danone’s business prospects for the rest of this year are still unpredictable. These uncertain factors include the lifting of local epidemic prevention measures, the recovery of channels, and the changes in consumption habits, especially outdoor consumption, agency channels and the recovery of cross-border business in Mainland China.