Giving Compass' Take:

• B the Change talks with a representative from food company Danone — now the largest Certified B Corporation in the world — on how large businesses can create positive change as well as profits.

• Multinational entities should look into Danone's report on moving through the B Corp process to see if it's worth doing the same. Regardless, this is a good case study of a commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility.

• Here's an investors guide to B Corps and other companies that provide a public benefit.

A global food company present in more than 130 markets, Danone has always had a purpose agenda, even in a time when it was an unusual idea. Danone committed to combine economic success and social progress in 1972, when the company’s founder, Antoine Riboud, began Danone’s “dual project.” As Danone has grown, that commitment has been apparent in initiatives, such as the Danone Way sustainable-development guidelines that have helped Danone subsidiaries improve their impact since 2001 and their establishment of Danone Communities, which began with a partnership with Mohammed Yunus in Bangladesh in 2006. Danone’s mission to bring health through food to as many people as possible is supported by a number of well-known brands across four categories (essential dairy and plant-based, bottled water, infant feeding and medical nutrition), including Danone, Oikos or Aptamil. Danone generated sales of more than €24 billion in 2017.

When Danone wanted to expand its footprint in the North American market, they decided to acquire WhiteWave Foods, an existing dairy and plant-based food company that was also the largest organic food company. The new entity, combining WhiteWave with Danone’s existing North American dairy business, more than doubled Danone’s business in North America and became one of the top 15 largest food and beverage companies in the United States. Danone North America, as the company is now known, represents approximately 20 percent of Danone’s global revenues and includes brands such as Oikos, Silk and Horizon Organic.

Read the full article about about Danone, the world's largest B Corporation, at B the Change.