BROOMFIELD, COLO. – Danone North America announced in conjunction with the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health on Sept. 28 that it plans to invest $22 million toward improving access to nutritious and health-promoting foods in the US.

The food and beverage manufacturer plans to make the investments by 2030. They include: donating $15 million to further nutrition education for consumers and healthcare providers, investing $3 million to improve access and affordability of nutrient-dense and health-promoting products (especially for underserved communities) and committing $4 million to enhance nutrition and food security research.

Per Danone, the $4 million commitment will involve grants, industry collaborations and nonprofit organizations, including Danone Institute North America.

As part of the overall initiative, the company also shared it plans to continue selling low- and no-sugar options and limiting sugar content in more than 95% of its children’s products. It also committed to increase nutrient density in more than 70% of its plant-based beverages.

Danone North America chief executive officer Shane Grant said the company was honored to participate in the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health, describing the event as an opportunity to engage with food system stakeholders on critical topics.

"At Danone, our mission to bring health through food to as many people as possible is embedded into everything we do, and for the last 50 years we've worked to create both shareholder and societal value through what we call our Dual Project,” Grant said. “The investment we announced today illustrates our mission in action."

The company shared its $15 million educational investments will provide healthcare providers and retailers with accurate, science-based health and nutrition data and information. Danone also will partner with some retailers to pilot activities that promote health and wellness.

Its $3 million investments toward improving access and affordability of nutrient-dense, health-promoting products – particularly in underserved communities – will be supported by federal programs, such as the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and school meals. Danone shared that it aims to expand the number of products it makes that can be purchased through WIC programs, and the company will focus on states with large Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) populations.

The $4 million Danone plans to invest in enhancing nutrition and food security research will include supporting programs “across culturally diverse, underserved communities, funding teams across the United States working on innovative community impact programs covering sustainable food systems, food access, nutrition, and hunger, and supporting universities and research institutions working to understand the link between food, nutrition and health and the role of the human microbiome.”

Within Danone North America’s portfolio, 70% of its foods and beverages fall into what it calls a health-promoting category – those products include milk, yogurt, fortified plant-based milk and plant-based yogurt. Its newly announced nutrition and health targets include committing to make 95% of its children’s products, per kilotons sold, contain a total sugar content at or below 10 grams per 100 grams of product, the company said. Additionally, all of its new products for children in the coming years will reach and exceed nutrition targets identified by the US Dietary Guidelines for Americans.