Nestlé suspends all capital investment in Russia following the invasion of Ukraine Business News

Nestlé has suspended all capital investment in Russia amid growing pressure on multinational companies to pull out of the country following the invasion of Ukraine.

The Swiss food maker, which makes brands including KitKat, Nescafé and Quality Street, told Reuters it would continue to supply essential food products to Russia.

Nestlé halted manufacturing in Russia on Feb. 24 and is now joining other major consumer goods makers in making a more comprehensive withdrawal. The company has three factories and employs around 5,000 people in the country.

Both Procter and Gamble and Unilever announced this week that they would halt advertising and new capital investment in Russia.

It comes after MacDonald’s bowed to consumer pressure, pulling out of Russia where its famous golden arches had become a symbol of the transition from communism to capitalism in the 1990s.

The fast food company said it would close all 850 stores in Russia in response to President Vladimir Putin’s assault on Ukraine.

Chief Executive Chris Kempczinski on Tuesday sent an email to all his employees and franchisees announcing that he would temporarily close all restaurants and suspend all operations in Russia, citing the “untold suffering for the innocent” in Ukraine.

All of its 62,000 employees in Russia will still be paid and the fast food giant’s charitable arm – the Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) – will continue to operate in the country.

Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has triggered a corporate exodus from Russia, with hundreds of companies in banking, retail, manufacturing and fossil fuel extraction all announcing their intention to leave.

Consumer-facing businesses face particular reputational risks if they are seen as tacitly supporting the Kremlin by staying in Russia.

Shell apologized this week following a backlash over news of buying a shipment of Russian oil.

The London-listed energy company announced it would end all purchases of Russian oil and gas shortly before the UK government announced it would phase out oil imports from Russia by the end of this year.