ROMANIA: Danone plans to invest 2 million euros on the local market | Progresiv
Danone Romania, the leader of the local yogurt market, continued its growth last year, reporting a turnover of 497 million lei, up by about 3% compared to 2016. The results consolidated a profitable position allowing the company to invest in development, this year's budget being 2 million euros. 
"Danone's results in Romania create a basis for continued sustainable business development and new local investment in our factory in Bucharest, in social projects and in the development of the yogurt category. In the period 2017-2018, we are investing approximately 1 million euros in the development of two new production lines and the introduction of a new palletizing robot in the factory that allows us to better respond to the needs of the local market and the other markets we serve in the region. A similar amount of 1 million euros is invested to support the development of partner farmers, both family and business", said Natalia Gelstein Kiss, General Manager Danone Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova and Adriatic Countries.
Danone produces more than 1 million yogurts on average daily in the factory in Bucharest, using over 60 million liters of milk a year, most of them from farms or households in Romania.
"After supporting in the last few years Activia, Actimel and Danonino, in 2018 we relaunched the Danone brand for our core portfolio, inviting consumers to rediscover the joy of simple milk and ferment recipes, the yogurts' goodness, and we generally support repositioning the yogurt category and its benefits", added Natalia Gelstein Kiss.
In Romania, yogurt consumption is still low compared to other countries at around 6.6 kg per person per year - compared to 23 kg in Bulgaria, over 10 kg in the Czech Republic or 21 kg in Sweden.
Danone Romania is the market leader in yogurt. The company has in its portfolio dozens of product assortments, made mostly in the factory in Bucharest, with fresh milk collected from Romanian farmers. The Danone Factory in Bucharest produced the first yogurts in 1999. In 2019, Danone Romania will celebrate 20 years of presence in Romania and 100 years worldwide since the production of the first Danone yogurts.
