TO: Clark Hansen, CEO, Anima Mundi Development Partners
FROM: Olivia Houri, R&D, Anima Mundi Development Partners
DATE: March 1, 2019
SUBJECT: Danone Investment Proposal
After being tasked with finding sustainable investment opportunities and doing further research I have concluded that investing in Danone would be a smart investment. They have a strong commitment to social and environmental reforms and have been performing better than expected. Danone is focused on selling primarily dairy and plant-based products. They have recently taken initiatives to be more socially conscious creating a healthy wellness brand. They have made it their mission to make good clean products that will allow their consumers to lead healthy lives. To do this they have recently sold off their beer and biscuit businesses and are now only selling products that are truly beneficial to their consumers' health. Not only have they taken socially conscious measures, but they have also taken environmentally conscious steps. They have committed to be carbon neutral by 2050. In addition to becoming entirely carbon neutral, they have also focused on regenerative agriculture. This practice is meant to empower what Danone calls agricultural resilience which includes “protecting soil, empowering a new generation of farmers, and promoting animal welfare.
Based on Danone’s commitment to people and the planet I believe this investment would be a great opportunity for ADMP. Not only are they in line with the category of companies ADMP aims to invest in they are also financially successful. In 2018 they produced higher than expected sales for the fourth quarter and higher earnings for 2018.

ADMP Standards
I would like to first explain the Anima Mundi Development Partners’ standards since ADMP is primarily seeking opportunities that comply with these standards thus influencing my recommendation.
Triple Bottom Line: A framework measuring sustainability involving the three Ps. Businesses have started to adopt the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) framework to measure their performance in terms of finances as well as their environmental and social contributions.
  • Profit: measures purely the financial side of the organization taking into account revenue and costs.
  • People: this aspect of the TBL measures the relationship of the company with its employees, with their consumers and the general community of their organization.
  • Planet: this last part of the TBL measures the company’s environmental impact and whether it is actively trying to help or protect the planet.
Corporate Social Responsibility: CSR refers to the responsibilities firms have in addition to the basic economic and legal duties they must fulfill. Following a CSR model allows firms to be accountable to themselves in addition to key stakeholders such as their customers, society and even the company’s employees.
Social Enterprise: an organization founded with the intent of creating better environmental or social conditions. This organization can either be a non-profit or a for-profit company. Either way, this enterprise is more so focused on helping people and the planet rather than trying to generate revenue.

Carbon Footprint: the amount of carbon dioxide that is emitted by a person or group that is caused by the consumption of fossil fuels. These emissions are thought to be contributing to the greenhouse gas effect and global warming because due to emissions being caught in the atmosphere. Many environmentally conscious organizations are attempting to take steps in order to reduce their carbon footprint to slow global warming and protect the planet.

Comments

  1. Kiki's WeeklyMarch 3, 2019 at 11:07 PM

    I knew about Danone's plan to be more health conscious but I was unaware that they were planning to be carbon neutral. That's really awesome news!

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousMarch 6, 2019 at 11:48 AM

    I really like your choice of company! I grew up eating Danone products but I never got around to learning about the company that produced many of my favorite childhood snacks! Looking forward to reading the rest!

    -Grant

    ReplyDelete
  3. AngadsaysMarch 10, 2019 at 8:12 PM

    Olivia, interesting choice for the investment memo. I wasn't aware that Danone invested in multiple brewing companies, till I read this. A commitment to Carbon Neutrality by 2050 is an initiative that a lot of customers will welcome given its massive target market. You may want to remove the extra spaces between the 3 P's above and keep the formatting consistent. Can't wait to read more!

    Best,
    Angad

    ReplyDelete

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