Thanks to all of you boycotting Mondelez
Agency on Corruption Prevention in Ukraine responds to the company: Your profits in Russia are literally our loss
Detta är en debattartikel. Det är skribenten som står för åsikterna som förs fram i texten, inte Aftonbladet.
Publicerad 2023-06-17
Dear Martina Flemström, CEO of Mondelez Sweden, and Dirk Van de Put, CEO of Mondelez International,
First of all I want to thank everyone who has shown their support to Ukrainians in Russia’s war against us. Special thanks to all the organizations that have taken the courageous step to boycott Mondelez products. Your efforts make a big difference.
On May 25th, the National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP) in Ukraine decided to blacklist the American company Mondelez International, which sells many popular brands in the Nordic region through Mondelez Sweden, including Marabou.
Additional brands are Bassetts, Philadelphia cheese, Daim, O'boy, Japp, Toblerone, Oreo, V6 chewing gums, Stimorol, Jenka, Halls throat lozenges, and biscuits such as Belvita, Ritz, LU and TUC.
Across Europe you offer numerous beloved snacks, such as Cadbury (England), Milka (Germany), Príncipe (Spain), Freia (Norway), and Fonzies (Italy), which, in turn, sponsor famous organizations like Manchester United and the German Bundesliga.
Mondelez International is also the second-largest shareholder in JDE, which owns Gevalia, Pickwicks tea, and Jacobs coffee.
Our agency is consistent in how we decide who to blacklist. Companies are blacklisted if they have not announced their withdrawal from the Russian market or if they fail to take meaningful measures to reduce their operations in Russia.
Our agency has limited resources but we strive to continuously review as many companies as possible. We add comments about each blacklisted company on our website.
Mondelez International's Russian subsidiary, Mondelez Rus, continues operations at its three Russian factories and decided back in 2022 to pause new investments and media spending.
Despite these actions there was a 38% increase in revenue and a 303% increase in profit during the 2022 invasion.
You have repeatedly claimed that you are providing essential food to the Russian population. The recent boycott in the Nordic region demonstrates that consumers are not convinced that these snacks qualify as essential goods.
All taxes paid by your subsidiary Mondelez Rus are contributing to Putin's war chest, funding additional waves of bombs against us. We suffer from unstable supply of electricity, water, internet, and worst of all, the loss and injury of family and friends in the war.
Following your recent statement, on June 15, I would be grateful if you could keep a dialogue with our agency on how you plan to reduce your contribution to Russia's war against the Ukrainian people.
Your profits in Russia are literally our loss. Please update us on how your future stand alone company in Russia and declining sales in Russia 2023 affect your contributions to the Russian state. For the time being you don’t meet the criteria to be removed from our blacklist “International sponsors of war”.
Numerous other companies, such as Ikea, H&M, Fazer, Lindt, and McDonald's, have already implemented significant changes. You're not alone in making these tough decisions.
To all the readers who agree with me please keep boycotting and share a tagged post #brandname
Agiya Zagrebelska
Head of the Sanctions Department
National Agency for the Prevention of Corruption, Ukraine