Kremlin explains Putin's decision to cancel nationalisation of Danone

The Russian authorities lifted temporary state management from the assets of French food giant Danone in Russia. The decision was made for reasons of expediency, Kremlin's official spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

On March 13, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree to cancel the nationalisation of Danone's business and its transfer to Russia's Federal Property Management Agency.

According to Peskov, all factors and conditions need to be weighed accordingly in every situation like this. Therefore, it does not mean that the Russian leadership will make similar decisions in relation to other foreign companies.

"Each decision is a separate situation that is associated with such expediency,” Peskov said.

On the evening of March 13, Vladimir Putin canceled the nationalisation of Danone's assets and their transfer to Russian state management. The new decree thus invalidated part of the 2023 document, when the shares of Danone Russia JSC, owned by Produits Laitiers Frais Est Europe and Danone Trade, were transferred to temporary management of Russia's Federal Property Management Agency.

Foreign shares in Danone Russia JSC and Baltika Brewing Company LLC were transferred under temporary management of the Federal Property Management Agency in mid-July. Later, Yakub Zakriev, Deputy Chairman of the government of Chechnya and Minister of Agriculture of the republic, was appointed CEO of Danone Russia. Afterwards, the company was renamed Health & Nutrition (H&N).

The Financial Times earlier reported that the management of the French concern was going to sell the business to Vamin Tatarstan dairy company, which belongs to 29-year-old Mintimer Mingazov. The latter is one of the top managers of the former Russian subsidiary of Danone.