MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 19th February, 2021) Paris-based multinational food company Danone released its annual financial report on Friday, reflecting a 1.5-percent year-on-year drop in sales on a like-for-like basis and a 6.6-percent drop on a reported basis in a "year marked by the health crisis."
"In 2020, consolidated sales stood at ��23.6 bn [$28.6 billion], down -1.5% on a like-for-like basis, with stable volumes (-0.1%) and a -1.5% decrease in value reflecting negative category and country mix, especially in Waters and Specialized Nutrition. On a reported basis, sales were down -6.6%," the report read.
Danone's dairy products segment appears least affected by the pandemic, demonstrating a net sales growth of 3.4 percent on a like-for-like basis and a 2.6-percent drop on the reported basis.
According to CEO Emmanuel Faber, as quoted in the report, while the company "faced material specific short-term challenges in a number of our key categories and geographies," it also "clearly uncovered significant long-term opportunities, whose existence directly lies in the strategic framework and choice of category portfolio that we made over the last several years."
Faber expects 2021 to become "a year of recovery," with sales expected to begin demonstrating growth as early as in the second quarter.
Danone owns such brands as Activia, Actimel, Oikos, Alpro and Evian, among others.
