Major Food and Beverage Companies, Coca-Cola, Pepsi, McDonald’s and Starbucks Desert Russia
- Many other multinational companies have joined the list of global brands pulling out or stopping their services in Russia
- Major food and beverage companies like Coca-Cola, Pepsi, McDonald's and Starbucks have all announced that they are leaving Russia
- Pepsi has been in Russia for than 60 years while it was under the Soviet Union and McDonald's entered few months before the Union collapsed
Pressure is mounting on the Russians as more multinational companies desert the Russian market in protests to Putin’s troop’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
The latest to join the list of companies leaving the country include PepsiCo, Coca-Cola, McDonald’s and Starbucks, all of which are US companies, according to a report by CNBC.
Source: Getty Images
Over 60 decades of operations paused because of war in Ukraine
The companies each announced on Tuesday, March 8, 2022, that they are suspending businesses in Russia after that country’s aggression in Ukraine.
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Pepsi has operated in Russia for more than 60 years. McDonald’s started operating when Russia was under the Soviet Union in Moscow, a few months before the collapse of the Union.
Recently, Pepsi. Coca-Cola, McDonald’s and Starbuck have been criticised for continuing to do business in Russia while other US companies reported suspension or paused operations.
A Professor at Yale, Jeffrey Sonnenfeld made a list of US companies that have left Russia and those that are still operating following President Putin’s war in Ukraine.
Until midday on Tuesday, Coca-Cola was among the most prominent name on that list.
What the companies are saying
Coca-Cola in a statement said their hearts are with Russians who are enduring unconscionable effects from the sad events in Ukraine. The company said it will continue to observe and evaluate the situation as situations evolve.
Russia is one of the few regions in the world where Coca-Cola’s archrival, Pepsi has a larger market share. In a stock filing, Coca-Cola said its business in Ukraine and Russia contribute about 1 to 2 per cent of its net operating income in 2021.
Pepsi is making a kill in Russia
In contrast, Pepsi makes roughly 4 per cent of its yearly income in Russia. The company is not stopping all its business in that country. According to Pepsi, it will keep selling some important products like baby food, milk and baby formula.
It is only halting the sale of its Pepsi-Cola, 7UP and Mirinda brands, along with major investments and all promotional activities.
Pepsi CEO, Ramon Laguarta said in a memo to employees that the company is staying true to the humanitarian aspect of its business.
Reports emerged earlier on Tuesday saying Pepsi was weighing the option of writing off its value in Russia.
850 McDonald's outlets closed
McDonald’s said on Tuesday that all its 850 outlets in Russia would temporarily shut down.
The company owns about 84 per cent of outlets in Russia while the rest are owned by Franchisees.
Starbucks said it would stop all Russian business activity as well as the shipment of its items.
McDonald’s has a bigger presence in Russia and gets a higher percentage of its global income from those sales.
Apple, others stop the sale of iPhone, iMac, Dell, others in Russia
Legit.ng has reported that As pressure keeps mounting on Kremlin to stop the war in Ukraine, many companies are deserting the Russian markets in droves.
The latest is tech giant, Apple which has stopped selling all its products in Russia. The firm announced the decision on Tuesday, March 1, 2022, after Russia began its invasion in Ukraine, CNBC reports.
Apple does not have a physical presence in Russia but sells its products online through storefronts. All storefronts selling Apple products in Russia are listed as unavailable.
Source: Legit.ng
