In light of the 77th anniversary of Indonesia’s independence, we look at the issues that Indonesians face today and what has been done to combat them. In accordance with the theme of “Recovery Together, Recover Stronger,” all of the issues require collaborative efforts from all stakeholders in the nation, rooted in the unity that the country was first built on.
After more than 68 years presence in Indonesia, Danone’s commitment still remains as clear as ever, which is the commitment to improve the quality of life of the people through its products and sustainable initiatives.
Vera Galuh Sugijanto, VP General Secretary Danone Indonesia
Danone Indonesia has been providing necessities for as long as people can remember, however its imprint on the country’s history goes beyond what most people might imagine. The corporation inherited two brands that are today known as part of Indonesia’s daily life; SGM Eksplor and AQUA.
“So it started from Indonesian heritage brands, with different histories, different purposes, but one thing in common between AQUA and SGM Eksplor is that they are among the pioneer brands in this category and their purpose is providing healthy nutrition and hydration to the Indonesian consumer,” Vera said.
A collaboration between the government and the United Nations, N.V. Saridele was founded as a solution to the needs of nutritious food products to combat malnutrition following the Second World War. The factory was opened in Yogyakarta in 1954. Today, it is known as PT Sarihusada Generasi Mahardhika.
“SGM was the first children's milk brand in Indonesia and continues to this day. It is almost 57 years; the brand is still here and is one of the most famous children's milk brands with very easy accessibility and affordability. SGM Eksplor believes all children should have equal opportunities to access affordable accessible nutrition and to progress,” said Vera.
Meanwhile, 1973 saw the creation of AQUA. It was launched when bottled water was not a well-known concept in the country. According to Vera, it was also quite progressive by the standards back then, as most Indonesians were tea-drinkers rather than water. After Tirto Utomo created the new bottled water, people were not really interested for the first years of the business. However, it started to gain traction and became the necessity that we know today.
AQUA maintains the minerals that are formed naturally in its protected water sources, processed through a thorough integrated system of 400 different quality check points to preserve the purity of the ecosystem surrounding its water sources.
Today, AQUA is so well-known that the word is synonymous with bottled water, while SGM Eksplor is undeniably one of the most reputable specialized nutrition brands for children in the country. However, the dangers of malnutrition and dehydration still remain. In fact, Indonesian children and young people are still facing the same issues today, and in some cases, it has gotten worse than ever before.
BAPPENAS reports that the country is facing a “triple burden of malnutrition [undernourishment, obesity and micronutrient deficiencies],” which means that there is a staggering number of cases of obesity, stunting and anemia among children in the country. UNICEF found that 20 percent of elementary school-aged children and about 15 percent of adolescents are obese, while 2 million children under five suffer from severe acute malnutrition. The government has pledged to reduce the stunting rate to below 14 percent in the next two years, an initiative Danone has supported.
Danone launched the umbrella program named “Bersama Cegah Stunting” (Together Against Stunting) in order to prevent stunting in the country with the approach of specific and sensitive intervention including water access sanitation and hygiene, healthy hydration education, balance nutrition education, stunting prevention action and community education and intervention.
Vera Galuh Sugijanto, VP General Secretary Danone Indonesia
“We also try to innovate and develop products that can help consumers get the nutrients that they need. As an example, we have added Iron C to SGM Eksplor formula, with this, SGM Eksplor is also showing our tangible commitment to addressing the country’s key health agenda. Anemia is known to be one of the major causes of stunting. This year, we have launched SGM Family Yummi-Nutri to provide affordable nutrition beyond children to the whole family,” added Vera, on how Danone provides solutions.
Furthermore, collaboration is also carried out to raise awareness about adequate hydration in the country. Danone Indonesia noted that one in five children and one in four adults are dehydrated. The company aims to offer high-quality hydration products to as many people as possible.
However, Danone Indonesia’s initiatives do not only benefit consumers. While it has a clear mission to put human health as the pinnacle of its values, the tagline “One Planet, One Health” demonstrates that it does so without compromising or destroying or affecting the planet’s health.
“Our vision reflects that the health of people and the health of the planet are interconnected. We measure everything, we implement what we call the three pillars of circularity; which is water circularity, plastic circularity and also carbon circularity,” Vera explained. She pointed to the use of solar panels in six of Danone Indonesia’s factories to date, aiming to have 21 factories by the end of 2023, and the use of a biomass boiler in the Prambanan factory, as proof of Danone’s global commitment to use 100 percent renewable energy in all factories in 2030. this is aligned with the government's program to accelerate the achievement of Indonesia's new and renewable energy mix target of 23 percent by 2025.
Statistics Indonesia’s (BPS) 2020 data show that only 72.55 percent of Indonesians have access to clean water, a figure much lower than the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) target.
To help protect the quantity and quality of water, various efforts have been implemented by the company to protect water resources, such as initiating hydrogeological research, conservation programs and the establishment of water stakeholder forums to ensure the involvement of all the stakeholders in managing the watershed. Together with various partners Danone has planted 2.5 million trees and has built 19 biodiversity parks totaling 160 hectares, as well as promoting environmentally friendly agricultural programs that have reached 1,154 farmers in 18 locations. While its initiative to support communities’ access to clean water has reached almost 438,000 people in 45 cities across the country.
Other initiatives include plastic waste management; since 1993, AQUA has been a pioneer in collecting and recycling plastic bottle waste by developing the AQUA PEDULI Program. Recently, through the Recycling Business Units and Integrated Waste Management Facilities, AQUA has collected up to 15,000 tons of used plastic bottles per year while empowering 10,000 scavengers.
This commitment is reinforced by the launch of the #BijakBerplastik (Be Plastic Wise) commitment in 2018. We are committed to collect more post-consumption plastic than we use from the environment by 2025, educating more than 5 million school students and 100 million consumers, and innovating 100 percent reused, recyclable, or compostable packaging by 2025 and increase recycled element rate in our bottle packaging until 50% by 2025.
“Circularity business of AQUA started back in 1983 when we introduced jugs to package our drinking water and this reusable jugs model is testament how 70% of AQUA business is already circular. As an embodiment of #BijakBerplastik commitment, AQUA launched AQUA Life, an innovative bottle packaging made from 100 percent recycled and recyclable materials in 2018, and in Bali we also launched returnable glass bottles, 100 percent recycled PET 600ml and AQUA Mini 200ml bottles without straws, labels and all its material is 100 percent recyclable,” said Vera.
In line with the government’s goal of recovering together, the company launched #KitaSalingJaga campaign during the pandemic to handle the situation through getting 100 percent of employees vaccinated, extending to families and business partners, assisting the government with vaccinations in 160 centers, applying health protocols in the surrounding areas of its factories and providing laptops, learning modules and scholarships to underprivileged students for learning.
Danone also champions inclusive diversity, a value that upholds the values of gender equality and women's empowerment by being committed to implementing gender-friendly policies, in the work environment.
Voted Best Company to Work for in Asia by HR Asia three times, the company offers a place that prioritizes the work-life balance and self-development. Female employees are given six months paid maternity leave, as well as access to flexible working arrangement, education on the First 1000 Days, lactation rooms in the workplace, and support for breastfeeding mothers through the inter-employee buddy system.
Based on research published in the Indonesian Journal of Community and Occupational Medicine (IJCOM), titled “Implementation and Preliminary Assessment of Workplace Post-Natal and Breastfeeding Support for Working Mothers (2021),” Danone’s policy initiatives have been successful in providing a safe working environment, especially for mothers.
Research showed that the policy has supported 70 percent of respondents to breastfeed for up to 12 months of more, and that as much as 66 percent of respondents utilizes lactation rooms in Danone’s work areas internationally. Moreover, Danone also managed to maintain the retention rate of female workers as much as 74 percent in 2021.
Looking toward the future, Danone Indonesia is prepared to do what it has always committed to doing; providing for the Indonesian people through its products and sustainable initiatives, especially during the recovery period currently underway so that Indonesia can come out stronger on the other side.
As the pandemic is beginning to subside, companies and people alike are concerned about the issue that will again disrupt the economic recovery of Indonesia, in the form of inflation caused by the economic crisis that stems from the disruptive years. However, the country can rest assure that the issue will not deter the company’s mission in any way.
Danone Indonesia has also supported micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in adapting digitalization due to consumers going online during the pandemic. Danone Indonesia has created a program called “Danone Digital UMKM Academy” together with the Women Will program by Google and strengthen entrepreneurial spirit of 3800 MSMEs together with Umar Usman University through DAMPING program.
“We continue to work for product innovation, as part of the company’s culture. We don’t innovate because we only want to innovate. We innovate because it is needed not only to respond to the changing situation of consumers and the community, but also to better shape the category and strengthen positive impact to Indonesia,” Vera concluded.
