The Dannon Company Announces the First Winner of the Dannon Probiotics Fellowship, an Initiative to Promote Education in the

  The Dannon Company Announces the First Winner of the Dannon Probiotics
  Fellowship, an Initiative to Promote Education in the Field of Probiotics

Winning Student Receives One Year’s Graduate School Tuition and Access to the
                       Danone Research Center in France

Business Wire

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. -- July 09, 2012

The Dannon Company is pleased to announce Nicholas Bokulich from the
University of California, Davis as the first recipient of the Dannon
Probiotics Fellowship program. The Dannon Probiotics Fellowship Program was
created to support the education of a student who excels in science and shows
a strong interest in the field of probiotics. Probiotics have become a main
focus of research for food scientists in the last decade. Yet, there are very
few scholarships and grants available to help education in the field. As a
company leading the way in probiotic research and education, The Dannon
Company hopes this Fellowship will help instill enthusiasm for probiotics in
the next generation of scientists.

“The study of probiotics is rapidly emerging and Nicholas stood out due to his
understanding of the field and the opportunities for advancing probiotic
applications to health,” said Dr. Miguel Freitas, Director of Health Affairs
at The Dannon Company. “For students like Nicholas who are planning to further
their education in probiotics, the Dannon Probiotics Fellowship program is an
exciting opportunity to not only receive educational support, but also have
access to some of the leading minds in this arena.”

Selected from a pool of qualified and talented candidates, Nicholas Bokulich
was chosen due to his strong interest in probiotics and commitment to
advancing health through scientific research. As a doctoral candidate with the
Mills Research Group at University of California, Davis, he focuses on the use
of foods as a delivery vector for beneficial bacteria in the human diet.

Bokulich’s research stood out among the applicants, comprising three main
themes: microbiology of fermented foods, the microbiology of the human gut
(particularly the downstream impact of probiotic and functional food
consumptions), and the development of molecular and bioinformatics tools to
analyze and describe these systems of microbial communities.

Bokulich will receive one year’s tuition (up to $25,000, payable to UC Davis)
to support his continued academic pursuits in the field of probiotics. He will
also receive an all-expense paid trip to the Danone Research Center in France
where he will have the opportunity to network and learn from over 300 top
scientists conducting studies on probiotics, physiology and nutrition,
sensorial analysis and consumer behavior as well as product prototyping.

“I’m honored to be a Dannon Probiotics Fellow and am excited about benefiting
both academically and professionally,” said Nicholas Bokulich. “The fellowship
will augment my research and provide me with insight into a company leading
probiotics research.”

As this year’s fellowship recipient, Bokulich was chosen by a panel of judges
that included: Dr. Mary Ellen Sanders, Dairy and Food Culture Technologies
Consultant, and Executive Director of the International Scientific Association
of Probiotics and Prebiotics (ISAPP); Daniel Merenstein, MD, Associate
Professor and Director of Research Programs at the Department of Family
Medicine at the Georgetown University Medical Center; Dr. Patrick Veiga,
Senior Scientist, The Danone Research Center; and Dr. Miguel Freitas, Director
of Health Affairs, The Dannon Company.

About the Dannon Probiotics Fellowship Program

To qualify for the Dannon Probiotics Fellowship Program, applicants had to be
currently enrolled in or applying to a full-time graduate program with a focus
on probiotics (e.g., probiotic mechanisms of action, probiotics foods,
probiotics supplements, and clinical research). Only incoming or current
graduate students 18 years of age or older, that would be able to utilize the
scholarship funds for the fall 2012 semester at an accredited U.S. institution
were considered. Applicants were required to submit a complete application
package, including a personal essay, recommendations from two professors, and
proof of good academic standing. Current graduate students, or those
considering continued education, who have a demonstrated interest in
probiotics are encouraged to visit www.dannon.com periodically for updates and
future opportunities.

About The Dannon Company, Inc.

Headquartered in White Plains, New York, Dannon has plants in Minster, OH,
Fort Worth, TX, West Jordan, UT, and Portland, OR, which make more than 200
different flavors, styles and sizes of cultured refrigerated and frozen dairy
products to serve its retail and foodservice customers. Dannon brings health
through food to as many people as possible via its diverse offering of
delicious and wholesome fresh and frozen yogurts.

Dannon is a subsidiary of Danone, and Dannon is the top-selling brand of
yogurt worldwide, sold under the names Dannon and Danone. Dannon’s commitment
to health is also illustrated through the support of the Dannon Institute, a
non-profit foundation dedicated to promoting research, education, and
communication about the links between nutrition, diet and health.

Danone holds top positions globally in healthy food through four businesses:
it ranks number one worldwide in fresh dairy products, number two in bottled
water and baby nutrition, and is Europe’s number one medical nutrition
company. Listed on Euronext Paris, Danone is a component stock of leading
social responsibility indexes including the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes
DJSI Stoxx and DJSI World, ASPI Eurozone and the Ethibel Sustainability Index.

Contact:

Media:
Edelman, for Dannon
Blair Benjamin, 212-704-8268
blair.benjamin@edelman.com