The world’s second largest brewery Heineken announced on Wednesday that it would end production, advertising and sales of its brands in Russia. This is in response to the “continued escalation of the war”. Last week, Heineken stopped new investments and exports to Russia.
The company was “shocked and saddened” by the situation in Ukraine, said Heineken boss Dolf van den Brink. He spoke of an “unprovoked and deeply unjustified” attack. Heineken employs 1,800 people in Russia and claims to be the third largest beer producer there.
Carlsberg profits are to be donated
Heineken’s competitor Carlsberg, the fourth largest brewer in the world, also wants to stop production and sales in Russia. However, the majority-owned Baltika subsidiary will continue to operate as an independent company. This is intended to support the 8,400 employees in Russia “who are not responsible for the actions of the government,” explained Carlsberg. The Danish group said it would donate all profits from its operations in Russia to aid organizations during the humanitarian crisis in Ukraine.
According to the University of Yale, around 300 companies have withdrawn from Russia or announced appropriate steps since the start of the Ukraine war. The US corporations McDonald’s, Coca-Cola and Starbucks only joined on Tuesday – they also reacted to pressure from the public.
Universal Music is closing offices
The world’s largest music label, Universal Music Group, has now announced that it will close all offices in Russia with immediate effect and put its business activities on hold. In a statement, the company called for an end to the violence and backed Western sanctions against Russia.
Sony no longer supplies Playstations
The Japanese electronics group Sony announced on Thursday that it would no longer ship Playstation game consoles to Russia. The online shop of the gaming giant is also to be discontinued in Russia. This means that Russian users can no longer download new games in this way. In addition, the group announced a donation of two million dollars (1.8 million euros) to aid organizations.
Ferrari stops production
Italian luxury car maker Ferrari also joined the companies drawing consequences from the invasion. A spokesman said on Wednesday the company had decided to end production for the Russian market. However, the company does not have a plant in Russia itself and only sells a small proportion of its cars in the country. At the same time Ferrari announced a donation of one million euros for Ukrainian refugees.
French train manufacturer Alstom announced on Wednesday that it would suspend deliveries to Russia and future investments in Russia. However, Alstom said it would retain its stake in Russian railway equipment maker Transmashholding.
Source: Nachrichten
