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With the Activia probiotic yoghurt accounting for nearly three quarters of all Danone dairy products sold worldwide, it is no wonder that the same brand has recorded tremendous success in Cyprus where it commands a 10% market share of all yoghurt sales.
In an interview with the Financial Mirror, Danone’s Vice President for Marking in the South East Europe area, Benoit Chaix De Lavarene, said that “Activia is not any other yoghurt. It provides all the nutritional benefits of regular yoghurt but, on top of this, it helps regulate the functioning of the intestine.”
“Yoghurt in itself is a healthy food and has several health benefits, however, not all yoghurts contain probiotics. This is a live microorganism which – when consumed in adequate amounts – gives the consumer a proven health benefit other than the nutritional benefit of the product it is found in.”
Explaining the technicalities, De Lavarene said that “a probiotic must be present as live cells in adequate amounts (around 100mln per gram of food), it must be stable and active till the last day of expiration of the foodstuff it is contained in and must be able to survive the passage from the gastrointestinal tract (stomach, small intestine) so that it can reach the large intestine in adequate quantities.”
On the other hand, “regular yoghurt contains good bacteria (microorganisms) but these are not probiotics. These are mainly used for technological reasons, i.e. to make yoghurt from milk, they are not necessarily present as live cells in adequate amounts and are not clinically proven to provide a specific health benefit.”
Activia contains the probiotic ActiRegularis which was developed by Danone Research and is clinically proven to survive passage through stomach and small intestine and reach large intestine in large quantities were it acts, regulating the functioning of the intestine.
The ‘actiregularis’ bifidobacteria culture claims to improve digestion within 14 days of regular consumption, which should come in useful in Cyprus where data from gastroenterologists suggests that 30% of Cypriots suffer from bloating.
“So far, 16 clinical studies have proven that Activia with ActiRegularis regulates the functioning of the intestine by reducing slow transit time,” De Lavarene added.
Asked if the Activia range will replace all other Danone yoghurt products, he simply said, “of course not.”
NUMBER 1
De Lavarene said that Activia is the Number 1 brand in 49 countries with sales of 2 bln euros.
“Danone produces a range of yoghurt products all over the world in parallel to Activia – spoonable, drinkable yoghurts even fresh cheese, with or without fruit and/or cereals and many other options. There are yoghurts for babies, for children and for everyone.”
Activia represents around 70% of Danone’s worldwide market share and the company is used to being number 1 or number 2 in the countries it is present. In Cyprus, it accounts for 10% of all non-fresh-milk dairy products.
Asked if new variants and flavours will be added, De Lavarene said that “though the benefit, the specific ferment and the process of production are the same worldwide, we adapted the recipe and the flavours for Cypriot and Greek consumers. For example, the plain strained and set, and the fruit products are sold only in Cyprus and Greece. The texture of the 200g Activia is thicker than French yoghurts, whereas the smaller-packed Activia ‘kathe stigmi’ (“every moment”) has a lighter texture.”
Danone spent about 200 mln euros in 2007 alone in research and to develop Activia further, which was 40% more than it spent on R&D in 2006. As a result it came up with the smaller, affordable 4-pot ‘kathe stigmi’ line that sells for 1.99 euros per pack. In Cyprus, it is available plain and with coconut or vanilla.
NEW TRENDS
Looking ahead, the natural question would be “what next?”
De Lavarene said that the trend is towards health, wellbeing maintenance and improvement, and a turn towards functional products, all categorised in four main areas:
Children’s well-being: a greater number of better-for-you products, and a focus on gluten-free children’s foods;
Intestinal well-being, detoxification, probiotics, prebiotics: digestive system health (well-being and body balance);
Bone and joint health: as baby boomers age and the stress on bones and joints becomes more evident, functional health ingredients for joint health and simplistic fortification with vitamin D and calcium will continue to grow;
More whole grains: whole grains take the center stage again this year with new products.
According to a May survey by Nielsen, other developing trends include the quest for value and convenience/practicality; “age awareness” in aging, teens and baby formula; ethical consumption of non-GMO, sustainability, minimalism and “natural”.
DISTRIBUTION
In the past, Danone had partnered with Delta, subsequently taken over by Vivartia, now a rival producer in Cyprus and Greece.
“Since 2005, Danone separated from Delta, and leads its independent strategy with great success,” explained De Lavarene, adding that “competition is healthy as long as it behaves fairly, and doesn’t mislead consumers. For 90 years, Danone has been appreciated by consumers around the world because we bring high quality products, fair and transparent information and real innovations. We will continue in that direction.”
In Cyprus, Danone also distributes the Actimel yoghurt drink, the Danino children’s yoghurt enriched with vitamin D and the Danette dessert through G&I Keses, with a first-year sales turnover of 2.4 mln euros.
“So far, we enjoy an excellent collaboration with our distributors, Keses, and we don’t have any other plans in the short term,” De Lavarene said.
Danone has entered into a strategic alliance with Lifepharma, the health products division of MSJ Jacovides Group, to promote Activia’s benefits primarily through health care providers.
Danone’s Evian and Volvic brands are distributed by Iacovos Photiades Foodstuff Suppliers (IPH), the baby nutrition Nutricia brand (formerly Cow & Gate) by Lifepharma (MSJ) and the Milupa products by Arbor Vitae. The medical nutrition products Nutricia SHS are also distributed by Lifepharma.
