Dannon
An American yogurt brand owned by Danone and associated with everyday nutrition, probiotic products, Greek yogurt and high-protein offerings.
Last updated October 14, 2026
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Overview
Dannon is the United States yogurt brand of Danone, the French food and beverage group. It was introduced in the American market in 1942 and helped turn yogurt from a relatively specialized food into a widely purchased grocery product. The brand’s name is the American form of Danone, the business founded in Barcelona in 1919 by Isaac Carasso and later developed internationally by his son, Daniel Carasso. Dannon’s American history is therefore connected to the broader Danone story, but the brand has its own distinct identity, distribution network and advertising tradition in the United States. The brand initially built its business around cultured dairy yogurt. Its growth depended not only on the product itself but also on consumer education: many American shoppers were unfamiliar with yogurt, and Dannon’s marketing presented it as a convenient, wholesome and versatile food. During the 1960s and 1970s, the company broadened its flavor range and invested heavily in television and print advertising. The 1976–1978 “In Soviet Georgia” campaign became one of the best-known examples of food advertising in the United States. By linking yogurt consumption with stories about longevity in Georgia, the campaign gave yogurt a health-oriented cultural meaning and contributed to Dannon’s expansion after a period of losses. The campaign’s claims and presentation also reflected the less rigorous advertising environment of the period; the ages and stories of people shown in the advertisements were later disputed. Dannon became part of the larger European food group that evolved into Danone. In 1981, BSN acquired Dannon from Beatrice, bringing the American yogurt business under the ownership of the group that later adopted the Danone name. The parent company subsequently organized its global activities around dairy and plant-based products, waters, and specialized nutrition. In the United States, Dannon has operated within a portfolio that has included both the Dannon master brand and separate Danone brands such as Activia, Oikos and DanActive. These products address different consumer needs, including everyday yogurt, Greek-style texture, digestive positioning, high protein, low sugar, drinkable formats and functional nutrition. Dannon’s current consumer proposition emphasizes uncomplicated, accessible yogurt for American families. Its offerings have included traditional cups, Greek yogurt, reduced-calorie products, children’s products and other refrigerated dairy formats. Product availability and naming can vary over time as Danone changes formulations, packaging and portfolio priorities. The brand competes in a crowded U.S. refrigerated food market against national, private-label and specialist yogurt brands. Its marketing has increasingly focused on protein, reduced sugar, probiotics, convenience and active lifestyles, while also using sampling, social media, retail promotions and digitally enabled coupons. Dannon is a brand rather than a separately listed company. Financial results, corporate acquisitions and group-level strategy are reported by Danone S.A., not ordinarily by Dannon as an independent public issuer. The brand remains active in the United States, with its identity grounded in yogurt, nutrition and mass-market availability.
History
Dannon’s American business began in 1942, when the Danone yogurt tradition was brought to the United States. The brand entered a market in which yogurt was not yet a routine staple for most households. Its early challenge was consequently educational as much as operational: consumers needed to understand what yogurt was, how it fit into daily eating habits and why a cultured dairy product could be both nutritious and enjoyable. During the postwar decades, Dannon expanded distribution and developed a broader selection of flavors. By the late 1960s, the company was selling multiple varieties and had become a significant participant in the growing American yogurt category. Its advertising helped frame yogurt as a convenient health-oriented food rather than a niche ethnic or specialty product. This positioning was reinforced by packaging, supermarket availability and communications that connected yogurt with digestion, vitality and balanced eating. The most famous expression of this strategy was the “In Soviet Georgia” campaign, created by the Marsteller agency and filmed in the Georgian region of the Soviet Union in 1976. The advertisements featured elderly residents and suggested a connection between local yogurt consumption and longevity. The campaign ran in television and print from 1976 to 1978 and received substantial attention. It is widely credited with helping Dannon reverse a loss-making period and broaden yogurt consumption in the United States. At the same time, the campaign illustrates the limits of health advertising of its era: some of the personal ages and implied evidence presented in the commercials were disputed. Ownership changed in 1981, when BSN acquired Dannon from Beatrice. BSN had previously expanded from glass into food and beverages and had merged with Gervais Danone in 1973. The combined group later became Danone, making Dannon part of a multinational food company. Under that structure, Dannon continued to serve the U.S. market while the parent company developed a wider portfolio of fresh dairy, water, infant nutrition, medical nutrition and, later, plant-based products. Dannon’s U.S. portfolio evolved beyond basic yogurt. Greek yogurt became a major growth platform, including the Oikos brand, while Activia emphasized probiotic and digestive associations, DanActive focused on functional drinking yogurt, and Light + Fit addressed reduced-calorie demand. The company also used celebrity advertising, consumer testimonials, product sampling, blogger outreach, retail promotions and mobile couponing. These activities reflected a shift from broad category education toward more segmented marketing based on protein, sugar reduction, digestion, convenience and active lifestyles. In 2009, Dannon settled a U.S. consumer class action concerning claims made for Activia and related products. The case alleged that advertising overstated the products’ proven health benefits; the reported settlement offered up to $35 million to eligible consumers. The dispute increased scrutiny of probiotic and functional-food claims and demonstrated the regulatory and reputational risks of presenting ordinary food products as clinically established health solutions. Today, Dannon remains an active U.S. yogurt brand within Danone. It is not a separately listed issuer, and its financial performance is not normally disclosed as an independent public company. Its identity continues to rest on familiar refrigerated yogurt formats while its parent company adapts the portfolio to changing demand for high protein, lower sugar, probiotics, drinkables and convenient nutrition.
- 2018
Oikos Triple Zero “Fuel Your Hustle” campaign
[6]Dannon uses Dak Prescott to promote Oikos Triple Zero and the role of high-protein yogurt in active lifestyles.
- 2017
Interactive television coupon campaign
[7]Dannon adds a mobile text-to-coupon mechanism to a national television advertisement.
- 2011
Dannon Oikos rebranding campaign
[5]Dannon promotes the rebranding of its Greek yogurt as Dannon Oikos through product sampling, blogger outreach and a BlogHer activation.
- 2009
Activia advertising settlement
[4]Dannon settles litigation challenging the strength of health claims used in advertising for Activia and related probiotic products.
- 1981
Acquisition by BSN
[3]BSN acquires Dannon from Beatrice, placing the American brand within the group that later becomes Danone.
- 1976
“In Soviet Georgia” campaign begins
[2]Dannon launches a television and print campaign connecting yogurt consumption in Georgia with longevity.
- 1967
Broader flavor selection and growing distribution
[8]Contemporary business histories describe Dannon as offering about ten flavors and selling a substantial share of standard yogurt cups in the United States by this period.
- 1942
Dannon enters the United States
[1]Dannon begins its American yogurt business, introducing the Danone tradition to the U.S. market.
Products and positioning
Accessible everyday yogurt with health, nutrition, probiotic and high-protein associations.
Traditional yogurt
Dannon Original
The core Dannon line consists of conventional refrigerated yogurt in familiar cup formats and multiple flavors. It represents the brand’s everyday, family-oriented proposition and its long-standing role in making yogurt accessible to mainstream American shoppers.
Greek yogurt
Dannon Greek
Dannon Greek products use the thicker texture associated with Greek-style yogurt and are positioned around taste, satiety and higher protein relative to many traditional yogurt formats. The Greek platform also supported the development and promotion of the Oikos brand in the United States.
Reduced-calorie yogurt
Dannon Light + Fit
Light + Fit is aimed at consumers seeking a lower-calorie yogurt option. Its marketing and product architecture emphasize everyday snacking, flavor variety and portioned convenience rather than the premium positioning of some Greek or functional products.
Greek yogurt
Oikos
Oikos is Danone’s U.S. Greek yogurt platform associated with thicker texture and protein-focused nutrition. Oikos Triple Zero was promoted as containing high protein with no added sugar and no artificial sweeteners, and the brand used sports and active-lifestyle advertising to increase household penetration.
Probiotic yogurt
Activia
Activia is a probiotic yogurt brand marketed around digestive wellness. It became one of Dannon’s most prominent functional-food brands, but its advertising also led to the 2009 U.S. class-action settlement concerning claims that consumers argued overstated the products’ clinically supported benefits.
Functional drinkable yogurt
DanActive
DanActive is a functional yogurt drink line promoted in the United States around immune-support and convenient nutrition. Advertising used real-life occupational settings, including firefighters and child-care professionals, to connect the product with active daily routines.
Controversies
2009
Activia health-claims litigation
A U.S. consumer class action alleged that Dannon’s advertising overstated the clinically proven health benefits of Activia and related probiotic products. Dannon settled the case in September 2009, with reported payments of up to $35 million and related changes to the challenged marketing.
1976
Disputed longevity claims in “In Soviet Georgia” advertising
The people featured in Dannon’s celebrated longevity advertisements were presented with ages and stories that were subsequently disputed and were not conclusively verified by the company.
Marketing campaigns
- 2018Fuel Your Hustle
United States
Dannon recruited Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott to promote Oikos Triple Zero and encourage consumers to view high-protein yogurt as part of everyday snacking and active routines.
Outcome. Dannon reported 22% sales growth for Oikos Triple Zero during 2017 and used the campaign to pursue broader awareness among younger active consumers.
- 2017Natural Yogurt mobile coupon television campaign
United States
Dannon added a text-based call to action to a national television spot, allowing viewers to request a yogurt coupon through a mobile device without requiring a smart-TV platform.
Outcome. The execution was presented as an early example of distributing a consumer packaged goods coupon directly through conventional television advertising.
- 2011Dannon Oikos rebranding and BlogHer sampling
United States
To support the change from Dannon Greek yogurt to Dannon Oikos, the brand combined product sampling, blogger relations and an activation at the BlogHer conference. The program also connected attendees with advertising featuring John Stamos.
Outcome. The campaign generated trial and word-of-mouth around the renamed Greek yogurt platform.
- 1976In Soviet Georgia
United States
Dannon’s Marsteller-created campaign filmed advertisements in Georgia, then part of the Soviet Union, and presented elderly residents while suggesting that local yogurt consumption contributed to exceptional longevity. The campaign sought to make yogurt relevant to Americans who did not yet regularly eat it and ran through 1978.
Outcome. The campaign became a landmark in American food advertising and is credited with helping Dannon move from losses into a period of growth, although the ages and stories used in the advertisements were later questioned.
Brand decisions
2011
Rebrand Dannon Greek as Dannon OikosStrategyBackground
Dannon sought to give its Greek yogurt platform a clearer identity and build trial through social and experiential marketing.
Action taken
The company introduced the Dannon Oikos name and supported it with sampling, blogger outreach and celebrity advertising.
Aftermath
Oikos became a central U.S. platform for Greek yogurt and later high-protein marketing.
2009
Settle Activia advertising caseOtherBackground
Consumer plaintiffs challenged the strength of health and probiotic claims used in advertising for Activia and related products.
Action taken
Dannon agreed to a settlement reported at up to $35 million and faced requirements associated with resolving the claims dispute.
Aftermath
The case heightened scrutiny of health-benefit language in functional-food advertising.
Reported maximum settlement. $35 million (2009)
1981
Move Dannon into BSN ownershipM&ABackground
Dannon had become a major U.S. yogurt maker, while BSN was building a broader European food and beverage group.
Action taken
BSN acquired Dannon from Beatrice.
Aftermath
The transaction integrated the American yogurt business into the corporate lineage that later became Danone.
Recent events
Lucasfilm and eight brands launch a Rise of Skywalker promotional alliance[10]
Reported:
Lucasfilm partnered with Bose, Dannon, GE Appliances, General Mills, McDonald's, Porsche, Samsung Mobile, and United Airlines in a promotional alliance for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. The promotion alliance kicked off on October 2, 2019.
Sources10 sources
- 1Dannon official websitedannon.com
- 2Advertising: Dannon Visits a Soviet Villagenytimes.com
- 3Dannon Company history and corporate backgroundencyclopedia.com
- 4Lawsuit Settled: Dannon Yogurt Didn’t Measure Up to Its Claimsbadgut.org
- 5Dannon Oikos rebranding and social-media samplingsupermarketnews.com
- 6Dannon’s Oikos Triple Zero campaignfoodnavigator-usa.com
- 7Dannon mobile television coupon campaignretaildive.com
- 8Broader flavor selection and growing distributioncascade.app
- 9Disputed longevity claims in “In Soviet Georgia” advertisingen.wikipedia.org
- 10卢卡斯影业与八个品牌推出《天行者崛起》宣传合作comicsbeat.com
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