Lactalis Nestlé Ultra-Frais France

What Lactalis Nestlé Ultra-Frais France does

LACTALIS NESTLE ULTRA-FRAIS MARQUES, operating commercially as La Laitière, is a French ultra-frais dairy business structured as a joint venture between Lactalis and Nestlé. Headquartered in Laval, Pays de la Loire (with a marketing office in Noisy-le-Grand), the entity employs 1,940 people in France and runs dedicated manufacturing plants in Cuincy (glass-jar yogurts), Andrézieux (pastry-style yogurts in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes), and Brittany (ice cream). The brand was created in 1973 and is positioned around traditional French recipes, French milk sourcing (collected within ~30km of factories), and recyclable glass-jar packaging, supported by 620 tasting sessions per year and a 400-tonne sugar reduction (2020 vs 2018).

La Laitière's portfolio spans three main categories — yogurts (iconic Yaourts Pots Verre and Yaourts Pâtissiers), chilled desserts (mousses, cream pots, rice/semolina puddings, profiteroles, clafoutis, île flottante), and ice creams/sorbets (Glaces La Laitière, 10 flavors). Sub-brands such as Secret de Mousse, MaronSui's, Velours de Crème, Frais & Fondant, and Petits Pots de Crème provide depth within each range. Products are sold to French households through supermarket and hypermarket chains across all French regions, with the brand website (lalaitiere.fr) serving as a content, recipe, and coupon hub rather than a direct e-commerce storefront.

The business model is classic French CPG: high-volume retail grocery sales of branded dairy and dessert SKUs, backed by the supply chain, R&D, and capital of two of the world's largest dairy and FMCG parents. François Lebreton serves as Directeur Général (Director of Publication). There are no public funding rounds, no public revenue disclosure, and no international footprint beyond France. The only documented technology use beyond traditional dairy manufacturing is a 2021 generative-AI outpainting campaign on the brand's iconic Vermeer painting, executed with Ogilvy Paris. In 2024, the brand was elected "Marque Préférée des Français" in the yogurts and desserts category (OpinionWay).

Name

Lactalis Nestlé Ultra-Frais France

Legal name

LACTALIS NESTLE ULTRA-FRAIS MARQUES

Website

https://lalaitiere.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1973

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

La Laitière is a French dairy and dessert brand operated by LACTALIS NESTLE ULTRA-FRAIS MARQUES, a joint venture between Lactalis and Nestlé. It produces and sells yogurts, cream desserts, mousses, and ice creams to French households through national supermarket and hypermarket retail, using French-milk sourcing and traditional recipes dating to 1973.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Dairy Products (Yogurts and Desserts)

NAICS

Dairy Product (except Frozen) Manufacturing (31151), Ice Cream and Frozen Dessert Manufacturing (311520), Dairy Product Manufacturing (3115)

SIC

Dairy Products (2020), Ice Cream & Frozen Desserts (2024)

akta.pro primary industry

Yogurt & Cultured Dairy Products Manufacturing (Kefir, Sour Cream, Labneh) (AFAKAKAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Yogurt & Cultured Dairy (Yogurt, Kefir, Sour Cream, Cottage Cheese) (CRADACAB), Frozen Yogurt Manufacturing (AFAHAEAC)

Keywords

• Dairy product manufacturing
• Yogurt and desserts
• Consumer packaged goods
• Frozen dairy products
• Branded dairy foods

Headquarters

HQ city

Laval

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Dairy Product Sales: La Laitière generates revenue through the sale of dairy products including yogurts, desserts (creams, mousses, rice puddings), and ice creams through retail grocery channels throughout France.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Lactalis Nestlé Ultra-Frais France operates the La Laitière brand, manufacturing and selling a wide range of French dairy products including yogurt in glass jars, mousse desserts, cream desserts, rice and semolina puddings, pastry-style yogurts, and ice creams made with French milk. The company runs production facilities in Cuincy (yogurts), Andrézieux (pastry yogurts), and Brittany (ice creams), selling through supermarket and hypermarket channels across France.

Product overview

La Laitière is a French dairy and dessert brand belonging to Lactalis Nestlé Ultra-Frais France, offering a broad portfolio of yogurt, mousse, cream dessert, rice/semolina pudding, pastry, and ice cream products. The product range centers on three main categories: (1) Yogurts — including the iconic Yaourts Pot Verre (glass jar yogurts in Natural, Vanille, Citron, Fraise, and Panaché flavors) and Yaourts Pâtissiers (pastry-inspired yogurts with biscuit pieces in flavors like Fraise façon tarte, Pomme façon tarte tatin, and Citrons façon tarte meringuée); (2) Desserts — comprising mousses (Secret de Mousse, Mousse Irrésistible, Feuilleté de Mousse, MaronSui's), cream desserts (Le Petit Pot de Crème, Velours de Crème, Frais & Fondant, Crème aux Oeufs, Crème Caramel, Crème Brûlée), rice and semolina puddings (Riz au Lait, Semoule au Lait, Gâteau de Riz), and pastries (Profiteroles, Clafoutis, Amandines, Ile Flottante); and (3) Glaces (ice creams and sorbets) with 10 flavors made in Brittany with French milk. The brand emphasizes French milk sourcing, quality ingredients, and traditional know-how dating back to 1973, and was elected Marque Préférée des Français (Preferred French Brand) in the yogurt and dessert category in 2024.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Yaourts Pots Verre: Iconic yogurt in glass jars, made with whole French milk, fermented for 5 hours
• Yaourts Pâtissiers
• Petit Pot de Crème
• Secret de Mousse
• MaronSui's
• Feuilleté de Mousse
• Velours de Crème
• Frais & Fondant
• Crème aux Oeufs
• Crème Caramel
• Riz au Lait
• Profiteroles
• Glaces La Laitière

Products and services

• Yaourts Pot Verre The iconic La Laitière yogurt in reusable glass jars, made with whole French milk fermented for 5 hours in the pot. Available in Natural, Vanille, Citron, Fraise, Panaché, and Panaché Parfums Inédits (Pêche, Myrtille, Framboise) flavors for French household consumers.
• Yaourts Pâtissiers Gourmet yogurts combining La Laitière's creamy yogurt with biscuit pieces inspired by classic French pastries. Available in Fraise façon tarte, Fraise façon fraisier, Framboise façon charlotte, Pomme façon tarte tatin, Myrtilles façon tarte, and Citrons façon tarte meringuée flavors. Made at the Andrézieux dairy in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes for French household consumers.
• Secret de Mousse An airy and intense mousse dessert available in multiple flavors including Chocolat noir, Chocolat au lait, Café, Caramel au beurre salé, and Noix de coco. Sold in glass pots for French household consumers.
• Mousse Irrésistible Intense and authentic chocolate mousse dessert targeted at all chocolate-loving French household consumers.
• Feuilleté de Mousse A layered dessert combining a melting mousse with crunchy cocoa leaves, available in Chocolat noir and Café varieties for French household consumers.
• MaronSui's A cream of chestnut mousse containing 54% cream of chestnut, offering an intense chestnut flavor for French household consumers.
• Le Petit Pot de Crème The iconic La Laitière cream pot dessert available in multiple flavors including Chocolat noir, Chocolat au lait, Vanille, Caramel, and Pistache for French household consumers.
• Velours de Crème A unique cream dessert experience with a velvety texture, available in Chocolat noir, Chocolat au lait, Chocolat au lait-Caramel, and Caramel varieties for French household consumers.
• Frais & Fondant A cream dessert with a unique fresh and melting texture, available in Vanille flavor for French household consumers.
• Crème aux Oeufs A cream dessert with the authentic taste of egg-based custard for French household consumers.
• Crème Caramel A melting cream dessert served on a generous layer of caramel for French household consumers.
• Crème Brûlée A cream dessert combining the melt-in-your-mouth cream with the crunch of caramelized sugar topping for French household consumers.
• Riz au Lait Rice pudding dessert with the full sweetness of milk rice, available in Nature and Vanille flavors for French household consumers.
• Semoule au Lait Semolina pudding with the sweetness of milk-based semolina for French household consumers.
• Gâteau de Riz A traditional and gourmet rice cake dessert for French household consumers.
• Profiteroles Small choux pastries filled with an unctuous vanilla-flavored cream dessert and topped with chocolate sauce, available in chocolate flavor for French household consumers.

Quantifiable outcome

• 400 tonnes of sugars reduced in products in 2020 compared to 2018
• +3 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• ADVERISminorOthersADVERIS is the web design agency and webmaster responsible for the La Laitière website (www.lalaitiere.fr), based at 13 rue d'Uzès, 75002 Paris, registered under RCS Paris 510 706 997.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Senoble: French dairy manufacturer specializing in yogurts, dairy desserts, and creams sold under retailer private labels and its own brands. Closely comparable product portfolio and identical French grocery retail channel.
• Yoplait: Joint venture between General Mills and Sodiaal, and one of the top yogurt brands in France. Competes directly with La Laitière across fruit yogurts, children's yogurts, and dairy desserts in French supermarkets.
• Andros Group: French family-owned food group producing dairy desserts, fruit preparations, and yogurts under brands like Andros, Mamie Nova, and Bonne Maman. Direct competitor in French chilled dessert and yogurt categories.
• Häagen-Dazs: Premium ice cream brand owned by General Mills, directly comparable to La Laitière's 2023-launched 'Glaces La Laitière' range in the French premium ice cream segment.
• Materne: French dairy and fruit preparation manufacturer (Materne, Pom'Potes, Hero) with overlapping dairy dessert and fruit-yogurt product portfolio serving French retail and family occasions.

Broad incumbents

• Unilever Ice Cream: Owns Magnum, Ben & Jerry's, and Carte d'Or, competing head-to-head with La Laitière in the French premium ice cream category and leveraging similar grocery retail distribution.
• Danone: World leader in yogurts and dairy desserts with flagship brands Activia, Danette, and Danio. Direct maker of competing French chilled yogurt and dessert products that share La Laitière's retail channels and target consumer base.
• Lactalis: The other JV parent and the world's largest dairy company, with brands like Galbani, Président, and Bridel. Operates adjacent dairy operations and shares supply chain and farmer networks with La Laitière.
• Nestlé: One of the two JV parents and a global dairy and ice cream giant with brands like Nestlé Laits, Smarties, and Extrême. Operates competing dairy and dessert portfolios across the same French retail channels.

Emerging players

• Michel et Augustin: French premium pastry and dessert brand with banana splits, cookies, and chilled desserts. Targets a similar premium French consumer but with a more niche, indie brand positioning than La Laitière's mass-market CPG scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lactalis-nestle-ultra-frais

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Lactalis Nestlé Ultra-Frais France