At some point even Nestlé will take a few steps back. Today, Wednesday, March 23, the company’s first partial withdrawals are recorded, indicating an imminent withdrawal from the Russian market. The food brand of Swiss origin has decided to limit its activities to essential products such as baby food and medical and hospital food. Instead, production of other brands and products such as KitKat and Nesquik will cease. The company then officially announced the “cessation of all nonessential imports and exports to and from Russia” and “all advertising and all capital investments in the country” which has been conducting a military offensive against Ukraine since February 24. The food giant also announced that “it will no longer pay taxes in Russia” and that “all profits made will be donated to humanitarian charities,” in addition to “hundreds of tons” of food and “significant financial support.” Support for Ukraine and the refugees, according to the statement published by Nestlé.
The news comes after a series of events that influenced the Swiss multinational’s final decision. Yesterday, activist collective Anonymous hacked the company’s database, “guilty” of not yet giving up activities in Russia. The same cyber collective complained about the action on Twitter and disclosed 10 gigabytes of the company’s private data. “This is collective retaliation for continuing the company’s business in Russia,” Anonymous wrote in the copy, also adding the hashtag #BoycottNestlé. And alongside the hack, criticism of the group’s decision to continue its activities in Russia has multiplied in recent days, starting with the harsh ones publicly voiced by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
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