French group Danone Chief Executive officer Antoine de Saint-Affrique poses prior to the group's general meeting in Paris on April 26th. Photograph: by ERIC PIERMONT/AFP via Getty ImagesDanone is seeking an exit from its dairy and yoghurt business in Russia, in a transaction that could result in a write-off of up to €1 billion for one of the world’s biggest makers of consumer goods.
Almost eight months since Russia invaded Ukraine, the French group said on Friday that it would “initiate a process to transfer the effective control” of the business, which includes 13 factories, 7,200 employees, and accounts for 5 per cent of its annual sales of about €24 billion. It remains unclear who will take over the business whose most popular brand is called Prostokvashino, or if there would be proceeds from a sale. The move would not represent a complete exit from Russia, however, since Danone will continue to sell baby formula in the country.
“Danone considers that this is the best option to ensure long-term local business continuity, for its employees, consumers and partners,” it said in a statement.