McCain Foods has scrapped its plan to open a potato processing plant in Russia following the country’s invasion of Ukraine. The company, founded in New Brunswick in Canada, announced the change in plans in a statement issued Thursday morning after previously saying it had halted construction as of Feb. 24.
“We have now made the decision to discontinue the project entirely,” Charlie Angelakos, McCain’s vice-president of global external affairs and sustainability said to the CBC in an emailed statement. “In addition, we are also suspending all shipments of our products into the Russian market.”
The full statement by McCain Foods reads:
“The Russian invasion of Ukraine has been deeply concerning to all of us at McCain Foods. Our thoughts continue to be with those affected by this crisis and we have done everything in our power to put the health and safety of our employees at the centre of our response.
On February 24, we stopped construction at our Russian production facility in the Tula Oblast region. We have now made the decision to discontinue the project entirely. In addition, we are also suspending all shipments of our products into the Russian market.
To help contribute to the global relief efforts underway, we recently donated $200,000 to the Red Cross Ukraine Humanitarian Crisis Appeal.
We are always guided in these decisions by the ethics and perspective of being a family-owned business from New Brunswick, Canada. As the global market leader in prepared French fries and specialty potato products, McCain Foods takes our leadership role seriously across the 160 countries that we operate in.
To make a donation to the Canadian Red Cross in support of the Ukraine Humanitarian Crisis Appeal, please visit donate.redcross.ca.
Source: McCain Foods. Original release here
Photo: Courtesy Government of New Brunswick, Canada
