The summit, now in its fourth year, explored six thematic pillars — agriculture, green finance and SMEs, education and youth empowerment, technology and data, renewable energy, and inclusive value chains — each critical to Africa’s just transition and equitable development.

Danone Southern Africa, a major player in the sector, is a certified B Corp based on its environmental and social practices and is constantly being reviewed in their behaviours, audit of performances and impact on society and on the environment.

Danone is a household name, producing dairy products. Some of the dairy products are NutriDay – South Africa’s number one yoghurt. Also, the firm produces Ultramel, which is famous, South Africa’s number one custard and not only produced for South Africa but also exports to neighbouring countries – stretching its  Southern Africa footprint.

“Danone globally, as a food manufacturer, has committed to be an organisation that does good as part of its business goals. So it means that as part of our business operations, all the work that we do, primarily number one, we manufacture healthy foods.”, says Leanne Kiezer, Head of Public Affairs at Danone Southern Africa.

Danone continues to work with small-scale farmers across Africa, providing infrastructure such as milk cooling stations and financial literacy support. The focus has been on regenerative agriculture, and local sourcing promotes inclusive growth and builds climate resilience within the food system.

“In terms of your work with smallholder farmers, how’s the impact there in terms of sustainability? Amazing, the impact is excellent. So across Africa, we work so far with at least 4,000 different smallholder farmers, and we have the goal to increase that scope to 10,000 by the end of next year.”, Kiezer emphasised during the first day of the B Lab Africa Summit.