We'll have to wait a little longer to gauge the success of this process. Indeed, Danone's annual results, published at the end of last week, do not show any major inflexion: performance in terms of margins, growth or profitability remains, on the whole, in line with its fifteen-year average.

We know that behind the departure of Emmanuel Faber - apostle of the mission-driven company and corporate social responsibility - and the activist campaign of the Blue Fund and the activist campaign of the Blue Bell fund, there was a simmering conflict between him and the honorary chairman of Franck Riboud, former CEO and son of founder Antoine Riboud.

At the end of these events - almost three years ago - Antoine de Saint-Affrique took over the helm of the group, after a successful career at the helm of Swiss chocolate maker Barry Callebaut. It clearly took him some time to make his mark at Danone.

Faber's tenure at Danone got off to a flying start at a time of stagnation for the group. Despite the criticism he may have faced, and debates about "committed" communication aside, Faber can still be credited with restoring a situation that was in a very bad way at the start of his tenure.

As we wrote above, we'd be wary of drawing any conclusions about the financial results for 2023. Sales rose by 7% on a comparable basis, but this was entirely due to price increases, as volumes declined by 0.4%.

The Group has undertaken a wide-ranging review of its scope of consolidation, and has already divested two assets. Its painful exit from Russia - where Vladimir Putin confiscated its subsidiary, which is to be bought out for a pittance by someone close to Chechen President Kadyrov - has already cost it EUR1.2 billion.

However, the Group is showing its confidence in the future by increasing its dividend by 5%, and is making no secret of its ambitions for external growth. All that remains is for the market to make the most of this opportunity, as it continues to value Danone shares in line with its fifteen-year average.