Coca-Cola Co and PepsiCo Inc said that they are suspending sales of their sodas in Russia, becoming the latest high-profile Western consumer brands to curtail operations in the region following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
Coca-Cola said its business in Russia and Ukraine contributed about 1% to 2% of the company's net operating revenue in 2021.
"Our hearts are with the people who are enduring unconscionable effects from these tragic events in Ukraine," the company said in a statement. "We will continue to monitor and assess the situation as circumstances evolve."
PepsiCo, whose colas were one of the few Western products allowed in the Soviet Union prior to its collapse, said it would continue to sell daily essentials, such as milk and other dairy offerings, baby formula and baby food, in Russia.
On Tuesday, McDonald's Corp said it would temporarily close all 847 of its restaurants in Russia.
L'Oréal Suspends Investments
Elsewhere, cosmetics giant L'Oréal is temporarily closing its stores in Russia and suspending investments in the country, it said on Tuesday.
"We strongly condemn the Russian invasion and the war in Ukraine, which is causing so much suffering to the Ukrainian people," the French company said in a statement.
L'Oréal's Russian business, which includes a production plant, accounts for a low, single-digit percentage of annual sales, according to the company.
L'Oréal said it was fully aligned with the position of French and European Union authorities. The world's biggest cosmetics firm, which owns the Lancome and Maybelline brands, said it was considering additional measures while seeking to take care of its 2,200 employees in Russia.
L'Oréal has 326 Ukrainian employees, the majority of whom remain in their country under what the company said were increasingly unbearable conditions.
"We are concerned for them and fear for their safety," L'Oréal said, noting that it was providing financial and psychological support.
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