Three years after the acquisition of WhiteWave, Danone is starting a new chapter for its Essential Dairy & Plant-Based (EDP) business to capture greater growth and value.

Following the WhiteWave acquisition, the global EDP organization focused on implementing a successful three-year integration program. In that time, it established a solid operational backbone, executing a strategy that, for the first time, blended and cross-fertilized the essential dairy and plant-based elements of the category to meet the rising demand from consumers adopting flexitarian diets, the company said. In addition, innovation capabilities were upscaled, and the $300 million run-rate synergies plan at the core of WhiteWave’s acquisition was delivered.

EDP North America is Danone’s largest business and the biggest B Corp in the world. As such, Danone said the transformation of the EDP business in the region provides a strong foundation for it to enter a new chapter of growth -- one that captures the realities of a fast-changing market.

In order to achieve this, the EDP global organization is evolving in two ways. First, to elevate EDP North America at the Danone Executive Committee level and strengthen the local focus of its organization, EDP will be recognized as a separate business, led by a new appointee. Second, the company will also create a Plant-based Acceleration Unit to leverage the power of EDP’s expertise in this area to unleash further growth opportunities across Danone, notably by expanding into new geographies outside North America.

Effective May 11, Shane Grant will join Danone as executive vice president and chief executive officer of Danone North America to lead the EDP business in that market. He will report to chairman and CEO Emmanuel Faber and will be a member of the executive committee. Before joining Danone, Grant spent almost 20 years with The Coca-Cola Co., where he held various leadership roles in marketing, commercial and general management.

With an ambition to increase plant-based sales worldwide from around €2 billion in 2019 to around €5 billion by 2025, the Plant-based Acceleration Unit will be led by Francisco Camacho, in addition to his current role in leading EDP activities in Europe, Latin America, the Commonwealth of Independent States and Aspame as executive vice president of EDP International.

The Plant-based Acceleration Unit will further expand into new categories, such as coffee, but also by leveraging plant-based expertise in categories outside EDP, such as baby food and healthy ageing food solutions, and by pivoting more large brands toward plant based.

In leading EDP International, Camacho will continue to drive EDP profitable sales growth internationally, building on the successful turnaround achieved in Europe under his leadership.

“I am grateful to our global and North American EDP teams for the great work achieved over the last three years in integrating WhiteWave and our Dairy business in the USA and Canada,” Faber said. “With a sequential acceleration of sales growth and the targeted $300 million synergies already secured, we believe it is the right moment for Danone North America to start another exciting phase of development and to fully participate, as the largest B Corp in the world, to Danone’s sustainable value creation agenda while deploying our ‘One Planet. One Health’ framework of action.”

He continued, “I am deeply thankful for Francisco Camacho and the EDP team for steering and supporting the successful integration phase and delighted to welcome Shane Grant as the new leader for Danone North America as a member of our Danone Comex team.”

As countries now enter into a recovery phase from the COVID-19 global pandemic, Faber said the increased regional focus will be instrumental to adjust and execute the company’s strategies to the local policies and realities.

“I want to use this opportunity to express again my deep gratitude to the Danone North America leaders and teams, as well as our global EDP employees and beyond, to the whole Danone teams and employees around the world, for their truly impressive commitment to our brands continued service of the needs of our customers, consumers and patients in the current challenging circumstances,” he said.