Danish brewery Carlsberg has joined Dutch brewing giant Heineken in announcing that it will pull out of Russia entirely amid Moscow's ongoing war against Ukraine.
Heineken and Carlsberg said on March 28 they would sell their businesses in Russia, both citing the war.
Heineken said its business in Russia "is no longer sustainable nor viable in the current environment. As a result, we have decided to leave Russia."
It said it was seeking an "orderly transfer of our business to a new owner in full compliance with international and local laws."
Heineken will continue to pay its 1,800 staff in Russia through the end of the year. The company said it will not profit from the sale of its Russian operations and expects to take a 400 million-euro ($438 million) charge as a result.
Amid international outrage and sanctions that followed Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, the Netherlands-based brewery halted new investments and sales to Russia and ended production, sales, and advertising of its Heineken brand beer there.
Carlsberg said the war and the "escalating humanitarian and refugee crisis shock us all," adding its deep condemnation of the Russian invasion and the deaths, devastation, and human suffering it has caused.
The Carlsberg Group decided earlier in March that it would no longer produce or sell its main Carlsberg brand in Russia. But after a strategic review of its presence in the country, the decision was made to sell the Russian business completely, Carlsberg wrote in a stock exchange release.
Once this process is completed, the company will no longer be represented in the country. Until then, operations will be maintained on a reduced scale, it said.
