Shownotes
In this Omni Talk Retail interview, recorded live from the Consumer Goods Forum Global Summit 2026 in Vienna, Chris Walton sits down with Pablo Perversi, President of EMEA at Danone, to discuss how one of the world's leading food companies is navigating the growing consumer focus on health, nutrition, and sustainability.
Pablo shares how the rise of GLP-1 medications is influencing consumer behavior, why protein has become one of the most important growth drivers in food, and how Danone is investing in emerging areas like gut health and healthy aging. He also explains the business value of B Corp certification, the role sustainability plays in attracting consumers and talent, and why health-focused innovation will continue to shape the future of the food industry.
Key Topics Covered:
• Pablo Perversi's expanded leadership role at Danone and across the European food industry
• How GLP-1 medications are changing consumer eating habits
• Why protein has become a major growth engine for Danone
• The growing connection between consumer education and nutrition choices
• Danone's perspective on health-driven food innovation
• How B Corp certification supports brand differentiation
• The relationship between sustainability and consumer trust
• Why B Corp certification helps attract talent
• The future of gut health and functional nutrition
• Danone's investments in microbiome science and Akkermansia
• How healthy aging is creating new opportunities in nutrition
• The role of medical nutrition in supporting aging populations
• Why health and wellness trends are reshaping the food industry
Special thanks to the CGF Leadership Studio sponsored by Vusion for supporting Omni Talk Retail's coverage in Vienna.
This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:
Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacy
Transcripts
Hello, this is Omnitalk Retail.
Speaker A:I'm Chris Walton and we are coming to you live once again from the Consumer Goods Forums Global Summit in Vienna, Austria.
Speaker A:And we are of course also in the CGF Leadership Studio, which is sponsored by Vuzion.
Speaker A:Now joining me is a man who we met last year at CGF for the very first time.
Speaker A:Yes, it's great to have you back, Pablo.
Speaker A:And of course I'm talking about Pablo Paversi, the president of EMEA at Danone.
Speaker A:Great to see you.
Speaker B:Great to see you.
Speaker A:How you find the show so far?
Speaker B:Hey, it's actually very interesting.
Speaker B:I've seen a lot of different people, a lot of different customers and had a lot of very good meetings.
Speaker A:Yeah, awesome, awesome.
Speaker A:Well, I want to get into it because the theme of this conference is the Adaptive Edge.
Speaker A:And you particularly have had to adapt quite a bit in the last few years because if memory serves me, your job responsibilities have grown significantly in the past year as well.
Speaker A:Can you talk to us about that?
Speaker B:Well, I've actually grown my job responsibilities not only within Danone, but outside of Danone as well.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker B:I'm very honoured in Danone to actually need now the whole EMEA region and then outside to head the industry for food and beverages in the whole of Europe, which is the biggest industry of Europe and the biggest employer of the whole of Europe.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:How do you balance all of that?
Speaker A:What have you had to start doing differently?
Speaker A:Or have you just.
Speaker A:Or has it just come natural?
Speaker B:No, no, it's a lot of work.
Speaker B:Definitely a lot of work.
Speaker B:And you can say that we are at a very pivoting time in the whole of the industry in Europe and in the whole world in many ways.
Speaker B:We've had a number of different incidents in the region that have actually meant that we had to double up on the amount of work.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker B:And now we continue the work as a result of the follow on from these incidents that have actually happened.
Speaker B:So there's been a lot of work that we've had to do, there's been a lot of effort from all of our teams, but I have to say we've actually responded very, very well.
Speaker B:Super proud of the teams and of everybody working to prepare us for the future.
Speaker A:Yeah, it's great to hear.
Speaker A:And I know resiliency and collaboration is just like part and parcel through this entire conference.
Speaker A:It's just emanating through everyone I talk to here as well.
Speaker A:So to that point, you know, one of those big changes impacting the industry is the GLP1 phenomenon.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A: ouble digit growth throughout: Speaker A:So congratulations on that success.
Speaker A:I'm curious how much of that success was driven by the GLP1 phenomenon versus just actually the positioning of the products themselves at Danone.
Speaker B:Well, as you know, GLP1 is a protein.
Speaker B:Everybody in the world actually has a protein.
Speaker B:But the main reason why GLP1 is in vogue right now is because somebody's invented a way of controlling the protein so that you can lose weight.
Speaker B:And this is not new.
Speaker B:Everybody has wanted to lose weight for many, many years actually.
Speaker B:So yes, there is an effect coming on board in the way that diet has actually changed and nutrition is actually being seeked from the way that people are consuming the Ozempics and all of these new ways of taking GLP1 into or controlling your GLP1 in the body.
Speaker B:Now, what has actually meant is that people have changed their diets as a result of not being hungry, okay?
Speaker B:And what they need to eat is actually much more into protein, much less into fats.
Speaker B:And therefore that changes completely the map of what they're ingesting.
Speaker B:When you have a percentage of penetration of some of these drugs in the States, for example, which is 14%, you do see the effect of that in the market.
Speaker A:You do.
Speaker B:But there's another effect.
Speaker B:And our consumers are much, much better educated in terms of food and health.
Speaker B:And health is becoming a driver of what people want for themselves.
Speaker B:And they're making the choices on health, on longevity, on a number of different things that are actually marking some of the effects and volumes that you see growing in the market so drastically.
Speaker A:That's interesting.
Speaker A:That's the first time I've ever heard that.
Speaker A:So the access to pharmaceuticals is actually spurring people to get more educated about their health and nutrition as well.
Speaker B:I think it's both actually.
Speaker B:I think people have actually been becoming much more educated with time.
Speaker B:And that actually has also been topped off by the access to pharmaceuticals as well.
Speaker A:Okay, interesting.
Speaker A:Okay, got it.
Speaker A:One other question I wanted to ask you, and I feel like I'm in a unique position to ask you.
Speaker A:This is the B Corp certification.
Speaker A:You know, it seems like that's been a trend by a lot of companies, particularly in the United States.
Speaker A:I've seen a lot of companies tout themselves as B Corp's.
Speaker A:How has that certification translated forbed unknown into like say, a competitive advantage?
Speaker A:How do you think about the B Corp certification through that lens or is that even the right lens to think about it?
Speaker B:Well, I think what you need to understand Is that today people actually want products that are sustainable in nature.
Speaker B:Yeah.
Speaker B:And in order to actually have that, you need to be able to do a certain number of things that are also involved in B Corp. And B Corp in itself is a brand which facing the consumers is actually saying to the consumers, this company is doing the right thing and these products are embodying what you're actually doing and what you would want for the future.
Speaker B:That doesn't mean that we don't have a business case for it.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker B:It just helps differentiate and talk about the way in which we do sustainability.
Speaker B:So we're very proud that we can actually adhere to B Corp. And at the same time differentiate in our products through B Corp. And at the same time, it is a magnet for talent in our company.
Speaker B:The fact that you are B Corp. Certified means that a lot of people want to come and work with you.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Because you're standing behind what it is that you believe in.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker B:So.
Speaker A:All right.
Speaker A:Well, I know we only have you for a quick amount of time, and I appreciate any time you can give us at this conference.
Speaker A:So thank you.
Speaker A:And it's always great to connect with you each and every year.
Speaker A:So I'm going to get you out of here on this.
Speaker A:Where do you expect, you know, over the next decade that the growth will come from for Danone?
Speaker B:I think what we've learned this year and in the previous two years is that we've been starting to lead the market on many, many different moves.
Speaker B:The protein move has actually become a very big move, and the world of protein is growing in lots of different ways.
Speaker B:But it's very, very clear that that is actually being impulsed by us.
Speaker B:We're one of the biggest.
Speaker B:One of the biggest investors in protein, in advertising and all the rest of it.
Speaker B:And as a result of that, that is moving across many different categories in a way that we actually haven't experienced before in the food industry.
Speaker B:This will continue into the future.
Speaker B:Gut health is another area where we are starting to see a lot of movement because people are starting to educate themselves on gut health, understand that the immunity system works on healthy guts, that the colon cancer comes from unhealthy guts.
Speaker B:And a lot of different effects in your body are because of what you eat and how your gut health is and understanding how you can actually make better products.
Speaker B:The acquisitions that we've actually done of Akkermansia, all these different elements that we're starting to put together mean that we are really investing into the future of gut health in a way that can be really exciting and we can help educate people so that they can actually benefit from many of these things.
Speaker B:And last but not least, if you actually look at our medical nutrition, hey, the population is aging.
Speaker B:Conditions of aging are growing.
Speaker B:And as a result of that, we still need in the world things that will help us with this aging conditions and at the same time not make it much more expensive for governments to have to pay, because otherwise the health services in different governments actually do not have the capability to continue going up in cost.
Speaker B:So we actually are helping many of the people reduce the time in the hospitals, and this actually reduces the cost for the governments as well.
Speaker A:Right.
Speaker A:Wow.
Speaker A:Okay, got it.
Speaker A:So.
Speaker A:So really the key there being protein, gut health, and then also making sure that you're thinking about how the overall, overall globe really is aging and providing what they need in regards to that aging.
Speaker B:Absolutely.
Speaker A:Nice, Nice.
Speaker A:Well done.
Speaker A:Well said.
Speaker A:All right.
Speaker B:Healthy aging will be something for us very soon.
Speaker A:Oh, I'm already there, man.
Speaker A:I'm already there.
Speaker A:Yeah, you're holding on.
Speaker A:Mine's long gone, my friend.
Speaker A:Long gone.
Speaker A:But hey, it's great to see you again.
Speaker B:Great to see you.
Speaker A:Great to see you.
Speaker A:Yeah.
Speaker A:Hopefully we'll do this again next year.
Speaker A:And again, Pablo, Pablo of Danone, thanks for spending time with us.
Speaker A:And thanks to Vuzion and CGF for allowing us to interview folks like Pablo.
Speaker A:And as always, be careful out there.