Pepsi Reportedly Stops Manufacturing Sodas In Russia—Joining Global Food Giants Leaving Amid Ukraine Invasion

Topline

Beverage giant PepsiCo has stopped manufacturing several of its popular soda brands in Russia, Reuters reported on Tuesday, a move that comes a month after the bottler of its chief rival Coca-Cola announced it had stopped all sales and production in the country and six months after Pepsi announced plans to suspend sales in the country following the invasion of Ukraine.

Key Facts

According to Reuters, PepsiCo stopped manufacturing concentrates for all of its soft drink brands—Pepsi-Cola, Mountain Dew, Mirinda and 7Up— in Russia, and all existing stock has now been exhausted.

In March, the company announced it was suspending sales of its beverages in Russia and was also halting all capital investments and advertising in the country.

Manufacturing labels on bottles suggest the most recent bottles of Pepsi were manufactured back on August 17, the Reuters report adds.

While no new batches of PepsiCo’s sodas are being manufactured in the country it is unclear how much inventory is still available in retail stores.

As it had indicated in March, PepsiCo still continues to sell “daily essentials such as milk and other dairy offerings, baby formula and baby food,” in Russia.

News Peg

Last month, Coca-Cola’s bottler in Russia, Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company, announced it has “stopped all production and sales” of Coca-Cola’s brands in the country. The company said it will scale down its business in Russia under the name Multon Partners and plans to only work with local brands. Coca-Cola only holds a 21.4% stake in the bottling company. Several other U.S. companies like Starbucks and McDonald’s announced their exit from Russia earlier this year.

Key Background

Pepsi joins several other major global food and beverage brands that have scaled down or suspended their businesses in Russia this year. Following its invasion of neighboring Ukraine Russia was hit by a string of Western-led economic sanctions, prompting several western brands to leave. After initial reticence, Swiss food and beverage major Nestle announced plans in March this year to scale back operations in Russia including the sale of popular brands like KitKat and Nesquik after facing boycott calls. Pepsi was one of the longest-operating U.S. businesses in Russia, having entered the country back in 1971. The company alluded to this in its March announcement noting that it arrived at “the height of the Cold War and helped create common ground between the United States and the Soviet Union.”

Further Reading

PepsiCo ends Pepsi, 7UP production in Russia months after promising halt over Ukraine (Reuters)