Chocolate giant Barry Callebaut defends Russia presence

[ZURICH] Swiss chocolate giant Barry Callebaut defended on Wednesday (Apr 13) its decision to remain in Russia despite Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, which has prompted hundreds of foreign firms to halt their Russian operations.

In a video address to a rally outside the Parliament in Bern last month, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky blasted Swiss firms that continue to do business in Russia "even though our children are dying and our cities are being destroyed".

Zelensky singled out food group Nestle, a major customer of Barry Callebaut, the world's top manufacturer of high-quality chocolate and cocoa products.

Barry Callebaut has 3 factories in Russia, where it employs 500 people. The country represents less than 5 per cent of is sales volume.

"We are here first and foremost for our employees," chief executive Peter Boone said at a press conference to present company results.

"The war in Ukraine was started by the Russian government, not by the Russian people," he said.

A slew of mostly Western firms, ranging from McDonald's to H&M and Goldman Sachs, have stopped operating in Russia since the Feb 24 invasion of Ukraine.

But others have chosen to stay, such as French supermarket chain Auchan.

Barry Callebaut, meanwhile, reported that sales revenue in the first 6 months of its 2021-2022 fiscal year jumped by nearly 16 per cent to 4 billion Swiss francs (3.9 billion euros, S$5.8 billion).

The group hiked prices amid soaring inflation that pushed up the costs of sugar and milk products.

Sales volume of chocolate and cocoa products rose by a strong 8.7 per cent to 1.16 billion tonnes.

Net profit was up 3.1 per cent at 212.1 million Swiss francs, with Boone saying the results were affected by the loss of value of financial assets in Russia, a hit totalling 5 million Swiss francs. AFP