Danone will seek a buyer for the Russian operations of its dairy and plant-based unit, and a sale could result in a write-off of up to 1 billion euros , the French food group said. The business, which owns the country’s top dairy brand Prostokvashino, represented around 5% of Danone’s revenue in the first nine months of the year. The company suspended investment in Russia after Moscow invaded Ukraine in February, but with the war in its eighth month, is now making a more decisive move.
While many Western multinationals have pulled out of Russia, food companies have maintained some operations there, arguing they have a moral imperative to feed people. Nestle continues to import products like infant nutrition into the country, and British rival Unilever still has factories in Russia, having pledged to continue selling essential products. Danone will continue exporting some specialised nutrition products into the country.