Since its creation in 2007, danone.communities expands the areas where its projects introduce new ways to innovate through the creation or the support of social businesses. These areas are children nutrition (Grameen Danone Foods Ltd.., Laiterie du Berger), access to safe drinking water (1001 Fontaines, Naandi Community Water Services) and the processing of farm products (ISOMIR)

In these projects, it is not the all-round development of products that counts but the improvement of local people via a proposed service or product adapted to their needs and created from their local constraints.

When the idea of creating a product of "social business" comes, many criteria must be taken into account to achieve the result that suits the community needs and constraints. According to François Colomban, director for Danone Food Design and R & D director for danone.communities, there are six key dimensions to consider:

As part of the annual profit-sharing campaign, danone.communities visited several French Danone centers to present its mutual fund and social businesses, partly supported thanks to the employee savings.

Late May 2011, the total assets were of 68.4 million euros, nearly half of which coming from Danone and its employees.

Between March and April, part of the danone.communities team went to meet employees at the Carasso Center (R&D in Palaiseau), St Ouen and Danone Place in Paris.