Need:

30% of all Bangladeshis and 56% of Bangladeshi children under the age of 5 suffer from moderate to severe malnutrition. In general the country has some of the highest child and maternal malnutrition rates according to the UNICEF State of the World's Children Report 2008. This in itself is a human tragedy. Malnutrition, however, is also a major impediment to development: malnourished people become sick more easily, can work less and find it more difficult to study. While Bangladesh produces sufficient rice to nourish its people, diets often lack vital nutrients such as vitamins and minerals.

Social business solution:

Grameen Danone Foods was founded in 2006 in order to fight malnutrition. The joint venture produces a yoghurt enriched with crucial nutrients at a price of 6 BDT (= 0.06 EUR) which even the poorest can afford. However, Grameen Danone Foods affects people's lives not only by improving their health. Benefits exist along the whole value chain. The milk for the yoghurt is purchased from micro-farmers. The production is designed in such a way as to give as many people as possible a job. Sales ladies distribute the yoghurt door-to-door and receive a 10% provision. Unsold yoghurts are taken back. In total, Grameen Danone Foods is responsible for the creation of about 1,600 jobs within a 30km radius around the plant. There is also an environmental aspect: Solar energy is used for heating up the water which is used for cleaning the installation and preheating water for the main boilers. In addition the packaging of the yoghurt is fully biodegradable.
Therefore Grameen Danone Foods contributes to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals by the United Nations to end poverty.

Outlook:

Grameen Danone plans to expand. Within the next 10 years, more plants will be established and several hundred distribution jobs will be created. The Danone Communities Fund has been created to support this endeavor. At the beginning of 2007 the independent NGO The Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) launched a trial designed to test the benefits from a regular consumption of the yoghurt. In November 2011, the preliminary study results where released saying that the impact of the Grameen Danone yoghurt shows a positive impact on growth and cognitive performance of children.

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