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

Lactalis Groupe Lactalis S.A. (doing business as 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 S.A. Lactalis is the largest dairy pr ...

. As of February 2025, ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

'' estimated his net worth at US$24.2 billion.

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 conservative news magazine published in Paris. It is one of the three major French news magazines. ''Le Point'' was founded in 1972 by former journalists of ''L'Express'' and quickly rose to be ...

'', May 19, 2011 His father was Michel Besnier and his mother, Christiane. His paternal grandfather, André Besnier, 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 14. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for students between ...

in Laval. He graduated from the ISG Business School 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. He shuns publicity and has been nicknamed "the invisible billionaire".

Lactalis salmonella scandal

At the end of 2017, Lactalis 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 (, stylized in all caps) is a French weekly news magazine headquartered in Paris. The weekly stands at the political centre-right in the French media landscape, and has a lifestyle supplement, ''L'Express Styles'', and a job supplement, ''R� ...

'', 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 club, service organizations in the world. The self-declared mission of Rotary, as stated on its website, is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, go ...

Personal life

He married Sandrine, a native of Laval whom he met in high school, 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. It is known for being, along with the 16th arrondissement and the ''commune'' of Neuilly-sur-Sein ...

. They also live in a

château A château (, ; plural: châteaux) is a manor house, or palace, 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 re ...

Entrammes Entrammes () is a Communes of France, commune in the Mayenne Departments of France, department in north-western France. It is located about west of Parné-sur-Roc and about south of Laval Entrammes Airport in Laval, Mayenne, Laval. History E ...

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 French Roman Catholics

Emmanuel Immanuel or Emmanuel (, "God swith us"; Koine Greek: ) is a Hebrew name that appears in the Book of Isaiah (7:14) as a sign that God will protect the House of David. The Gospel of Matthew ( Matthew 1:22 –23) interprets this as a prophecy of ...