Danone Is Leading the Race to Feed China’s Babies

Baby food sales jumped 10% last year, outperforming rivals
Co. sees double-digit 2018 EPS growth at constant currencies

Milk formula products manufactured by Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group Co., left, and Nestle SA, right, sit on a shelf inside a supermarket in Beijing, China, on Saturday, March 14, 2015. China is the world's largest dairy importer, accounting for about 30 percent of global purchases, according to Fonterra Cooperative Group Ltd.Photographer: Tomohiro Ohsumi

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By Corinne Gretler

February 16, 2018 at 6:30 AM UTC

Updated on

February 16, 2018 at 8:52 AM UTC

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Danone is leading the race to feed China’s babies, gaining ground against Nestle SA and Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc and offsetting a slump in its yogurt business.

Sales of infant nutrition climbed almost 10 percent last year, the Paris-based company said Friday. That was fueled by growth in China and the rest of Asia, where Danone has doubled its market share in baby food in the past five years as it increasingly cuts out the middleman by establishing direct sales to consumers.