Ukraine's anti-corruption agency has accused Finnish beverage company Hartwall of condoning Russia's war of aggression due to its links to PepsiCo.
At the beginning of this month, the National Agency on Corruption Prevention (NACP) added the US multinational drinks company PepsiCo to its list of "international sponsors of war".
Hartwall is licensed to manufacture and sell PepsiCo brands — including Pepsi, 7 Up and Mountain Dew — in Finland.
"If they consider themselves to be a responsible company and they condemn Russia's war against Ukraine, then they should end their partnership with Pepsi," Agiya Zagrebelska, head of NACP's Corruption and Sanctions unit, told Yle by telephone.
Hartwall did not reply directly to Yle's request for comment on the NACP's charge that its continued cooperation with PepsiCo means it accepts Russia's war on Ukraine.
However, in a brief email response, the company stated that it manufactures PepsiCo beverages from its factory in Lahti for the Finnish market only, and it does not source any raw materials or packaging from Russia.
Despite this, Zagrebelska called on the Finnish company to end its relationship with PepsiCo and thereby put pressure on the US company to leave the Russian market.
"PepsiCo's management team will only make the decision to leave Russia if it realises that it will have a negative impact on the rest of its business," Zagrebelska said.
NACP: Pepsi did not leave Russian market
According to the NACP, PepsiCo announced the suspension of advertising and beverage production in Russia shortly after the Kremlin invaded Ukraine in February last year.
However, the company resumed production of a number of brands later in 2022, and even launched a new soft drink in the Russian market. NACP added that PepsiCo has continued to produce and distribute other products, including Lay's crisps, which have been found in the food rations of Russian soldiers.
Hartwall is responsible for importing the same crisps brand into Finland.
PepsiCo also operates 19 factories in Russia, NACP noted, and employs an estimated 60,000 people.
"Despite PepsiCo's promise to reduce its operations and suspend all advertising activities in Russia, the company's career page lists more than 580 open positions in the country," NACP said.
Companies operating in Russia pay "war tax"
The companies on NACP's boycott list are supporting President Vladimir Putin's regime via tax revenues, the agency said, with PepsiCo paying more than 100 million euros in taxes to the Russian state last year.
This indirectly funds the war on Ukraine, NACP noted.
In addition, Russian companies and foreign subsidiaries operating in Russia will be subject to a new so-called "war tax" under a provision brought in by the Kremlin.
"If Western companies left Russia altogether, the war would end. Russia would not be able to sustain its economy without the support of these companies," Zagrebelska said.
Finnish Parliament stops selling "blood Pepsi"
Restaurants in the Finnish Parliament Building stopped selling Pepsi products on Tuesday because of the company's continued operations in Russia.
The move was made after Centre Party MP Tuomas Kettunen asked parliament to "set an example" by halting the sale of "blood Pepsi" in a press release on Monday.
The Finnish Parliament's restaurant manager confirmed the decision to Yle, adding that Pepsi products have been removed from the premises in response to the company's addition to the NACP list.
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