In this week's episode of The Food Biz hosts Kristyn Tarpey and Ryan Nelson take a deep dive into how companies are reacting to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

They kick off the episode by discussing how Nestlé, the world’s largest food group by market cap, denied claims that Anonymous stole and leaked sensitive information as punishment for doing business in Russia.  Regardless of how the information was leaked, Nestle did announce last Wednesday that it will be further restricting its operations in Russia and focus solely on providing essential food as opposed to making a profit.  Nestlé also said they will donate any profits they make from Russian sales to humanitarian relief organizations.

Ryan and Kristyn debate the responsibility companies hold in geopolitical issues.  Kristyn believes that having companies that are symbolic of the West make their stance on the issue known is a good thing.  Ryan states that a company has a responsibility to its shareholders to bring in as much profit as possible.  Kristyn and Ryan end up both agreeing that it’s a complicated issue and while companies need to make sure they are profitable, it’s also a good thing for companies to take a stand against Russia’s invasion as it may help contribute to keeping the war from escalating worldwide.

Kristyn and Ryan finished the episode by discussing the list of over 450 companies and their current involvement with Russia.  The list categorizes the companies into one of five categories: withdrawal, suspension, scaling back, buying time, and digging in.  The list contains well-known companies that have withdrawn from Russia, such as Amazon, Adobe, Clorox, Dell, FedEx, Microsoft, Papa John’s, Sony, and many more. 
Kristyn makes a point that B2B companies may be less likely to pull out of Russia than consumer-facing companies, as consumer-facing companies may receive more backlash from their customers. Kristyn and Ryan both agree that as the situation with Russia develops there will be more for them to discuss.  

Make sure to listen to the entire episode on Spotify or in the Apple Podcasts App!  While you’re there, don’t forget to subscribe. Also, feel free to reach out to us by email at news@barchart.com with any discussion topics, questions, comments, or overall feedback; Ryan and Kristyn would love to hear from you!