Emmanuel Besnier (born 18 September 1970) is a French heir and businessman. He is the chief executive officer (CEO) of

Lactalis Lactalis is a French multinational dairy products corporation, owned by the Besnier family and based in Laval, Mayenne, France. The company's former name was Besnier SA. Lactalis is the largest dairy products group in the world, and is the se ...

Early life

Emmanuel Besnier was born on 18 September 1970 in Laval, Mayenne, France.Marie Bordet
Besnier, le milliardaire invisible
''

Le Point ''Le Point'' () is a French weekly political and news magazine published in Paris. History and profile ''Le Point'' was founded in September 1972 by a group of journalists who had, one year earlier, left the editorial team of '' L'Express'', w ...

'', May 19, 2011 His father was

Michel Besnier Michel Besnier (1928–2000) was a French heir and businessman. He served as the Chief Executive Officer of the Besnier Group, later known as Lactalis. Early life Michel Besnier was born on 18 September 1928 in Laval, Mayenne. His father, André ...

and his mother, Christiane. His paternal grandfather,

André Besnier Lactalis is a French multinational dairy products corporation, owned by the Besnier family and based in Laval, Mayenne, France. The company's former name was Besnier SA. Lactalis is the largest dairy products group in the world, and is the se ...

, was the founder of

in 1933. He has a brother, Jean-Michel, and a sister, Marie.Valerie Landreu
Emmanuel Besnier, un patron très discret
'' Les Echos'', April 16, 2011 He was educated at the Lycée de l'Immaculée-Conception, a Roman Catholic private

lycée In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 15. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for children between ...

in Laval. He graduated from the

ISG Business School The ISG business school or Institut Superieur de Gestion, is a major business school, based in Paris, France. It was founded in 1967 by a group of French CEOs led by Pierre-Alexandre Dumas. In 1983, ISG opened its own campuses in New York and T ...

in Paris.

Career

Besnier joined Lactalis as director of development in 1995. He took over as the CEO in 2000, when his father died. With his brother and sister, he owned 83% of Lactalis. In June 2018, according to ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

'', he had a net worth of $15.1 billion. He shuns publicity and has been nicknamed "the invisible billionaire".

Lactalis salmonella scandal

At the end of 2017, Lactasis had to recall 12 million salmonella-contaminated boxes of baby milk from 83 countries. Besnier was summoned by Bruno Lemaire to the French finance ministry.

Philanthropy

He donates Euro 200,000 annually to the Francis-Le-Basser football stadium in Laval. He also attends their board meetings. He built a private box with tinted glass, from which he watches football matches.Nicolas Barriquand
Emmanuel Besnier, un si mystérieux patron
''

L'Express ''L'Express'' () is a French weekly news magazine headquartered in Paris. The weekly stands at the political centre in the French media landscape, and has a lifestyle supplement, ''L'Express Styles'', and a job supplement, ''Réussir''. History ...

'', January 26, 2015 In 2006, he was the recipient of the "Mayennais of the Year" award from the local

Rotary Club Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, profe ...

Personal life

He married Sandrine, a native of Laval whom he met at the lycée, at the Basilique Notre Dame in Laval. They have three children. They reside in the

7th arrondissement of Paris The 7th arrondissement of Paris (''VIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 Arrondissements of Paris, arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, this arrondissement is referred to as ''le septième''. The arrondissement, ca ...

. They also live in a

château A château (; plural: châteaux) is a manor house or residence of the lord of the manor, or a fine country house of nobility or gentry, with or without fortifications, originally, and still most frequently, in French-speaking regions. Nowaday ...

Entrammes Entrammes () is a commune in the Mayenne department in north-western France. It is located about west of Parné-sur-Roc and about south of Laval Entrammes Airport in Laval. History Entrammes owes its location to a major ford across the river ...

near Laval that he inherited from his father.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Besnier, Emmanuel Living people 1970 births People from Laval, Mayenne Businesspeople from Paris ISG Business School alumni French billionaires

Emmanuel Immanuel ( he, עִמָּנוּאֵל, 'Īmmānū'ēl, meaning, "God is with us"; also romanized: , ; and or in Koine Greek of the New Testament) is a Hebrew name that appears in the Book of Isaiah (7:14) as a sign that God will protect the H ...