Nestlé is weighing its options after the Kremlin placed the company’s Russian business under temporary external administration.

The Nescafé and KitKat maker said it was assessing the situation after Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a decree on Thursday transferring control of its operations in the country.

Nestlé said it would take “all necessary steps to protect its rights” while seeking to ensure its Russian business continues operating, with a particular focus on its employees.

The Swiss food company employs around 7,000 people in Russia and has operated six factories in the country.

Russia accounted for around £1.8bn of Nestlé’s sales in 2021, before its invasion of Ukraine the following year, although the company has since scaled back its operations in the market.

Nestlé now estimates Russia accounts for around one per cent of its total sales.

Following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine in 2022, Nestlé halted new investment in Russia, stopped advertising and suspended exports of non-essential products from the country.

The latest intervention forms part of a wider push by Moscow to take control of assets owned by companies from countries it considers “unfriendly”.

Russia has previously taken temporary control of operations belonging to international consumer businesses including Danone and brewer Carlsberg.

Putin’s latest decree also targeted French supermarket giant Auchan, with its Russian assets placed under external management.

Nestlé said: “The company is assessing the situation and its options.”

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