Danone could be poised to sell its water business, including the Evian and Volvic brands.

The French dairy giant is holding talks over a possible sale with Japanese drinks group Suntory, according to press reports. However, Suntory may only agree a deal for the Asian parts of the business.

The news comes as Danone reported a surge in third-quarter sales of almost 6% on a like-for-like basis to reach €4.81bn (£4.18bn). Overall sales for the first nine months of 2011 were up more than 14%.

Growth in its water business was driven by strong performances in the emerging markets of Latin America and Asia, while growth was more sluggish in European –with Danone blaming unfavourable weather over the past three months.

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Focus On Bottled Water (26 March 2011)
Riom replaces Fromage at helm of Danone UK (6 August 2011)