The chief executive of Cadbury-owner Mondelez has acknowledged his company’s taxes are helping to fund Russia’s war in Ukraine – but insists staying in the country was the “right decision”.
In a wide-ranging interview with the BBC, Dirk Van de Put said he was “not pleased” that the firm’s Russian operations were contributing to the war effort, but argued that pulling out would risk thousands of jobs and leave the business vulnerable to Kremlin seizure.
“Mondelez boss admits taxes fund Ukraine war but defends staying in Russia, citing risk to jobs and assets.”
“They would have confiscated our plant. It would have probably given them a much bigger source of income, keep on selling our products to fund the war,” he said. “So I feel that in the end it is not the most popular decision, but I think it was the right decision.”
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Mondelez has generated annual sales of between $1bn (£745m) and $1.4bn from the country. While many Western companies such as McDonald’s exited, Mondelez remained – though it said it had halted new investment and suspended advertising.
The decision has drawn fierce criticism in the UK. More than 70 MPs signed a letter from the All Party Parliamentary Group on Ukraine, urging Van de Put to sever ties with Russia.
Alex Sobel, chair of the group, wrote: “Continuing to operate in a nation responsible for the deaths of countless Ukrainian civilians and the abduction of thousands of children cannot be justified under any definition of ‘business as usual’.”
Van de Put, whose company also produces Philadelphia cream cheese, Ritz crackers and Toblerone, insisted that staying was the “right thing for our people in Russia”. He said: “I think over time you try to be neutral in the whole conflict. We’re not trying to take any side.”
But he admitted that criticism was justified. “We pay taxes in Russia that helps the war. I’m not pleased about that,” he said.
Meanwhile, Mondelez continues to operate in Ukraine, where the war is a constant presence. On the morning of the interview, Van de Put said an office building in Ukraine had been hit. “Everybody’s safe,” he said. “But yes, it’s the reality of the situation.”
The company runs two manufacturing plants in Ukraine – one in Trostyanets, near the Russian border, and one in Vyshhorod, close to the capital Kyiv. “One plant got hit twice, we’ve rebuilt it twice,” Van de Put said, adding that each rebuild costs tens of millions of dollars. He said the company had “agreed that we will rebuild every single time” and noted that Mondelez had “doubled everybody’s” – the sentence was cut off, but he appeared to refer to doubling wages or support for staff.
The dual stance – funding Russia’s war machine while rebuilding in Ukraine – has left Mondelez facing mounting pressure from British politicians and the public to choose a side.