The case in summary: McDonalds and Starbucks are among several American companies that have been boycotted because of Israeli warfare in Gaza. The boycott has had a significant impact on McDonald’s growth, says the company itself. There is disagreement between McDonalds in several countries about the support for Israel, McDonalds in Oman has chosen to donate money to Gaza. The Storting voted no to boycott and sanction Israel, despite demands from Rødt and SV. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAI. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. – I have decided to do what I can to boycott companies that support the Israeli occupation of Palestine and the ongoing war, says Refel Abeid. She is not alone in ditching cheeseburgers and Big Macs. McDonald’s is one of several American companies that have been boycotted since the war broke out in Gaza. On October 7, Hamas attacked a music festival in Israel. Then McDonalds in Israel chose to donate thousands of meals to Israeli soldiers, hospitals and military facilities. McDonalds believes that the boycott has had a “significant impact” on the figures. McDonald’s shares fell 4 percent when the figures were presented. Photo: Laik Hanbaly / news The Storting voted no to boycott This has led to a global boycott which has now been shown in the chain’s figures. It was expected that McDonalds would have a growth of 4.7 per cent, but ended up with 0.7 per cent growth. It was far below what was expected. – I do it because of the symbolism, and because of their direct involvement in supporting Israeli war games, says Abeid. news has tried to get in touch with McDonalds Norway, but has not been successful. Although many are calling for a boycott all over the world, there is not a political majority in Norway for a boycott. At the latest yesterday, a broad majority in the Storting voted no to boycott and sanction Israel. Disagreement internally At the end of 2023, it was clear that there was disagreement between the various McDonalds departments about the war. Among others, McDonalds in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Egypt, Bahrain, Jordan, Turkey, the Arab Emirates and Oman chose to publish a press release in which they distanced themselves from McDonalds Israel. Overall, they donated $3 million to Gaza. McDonald’s Oman also donated $100,000 to Gaza. To the criticism, McDonalds has previously said that it “does not finance or support any governments involved in this conflict”. They also added that actions taken by local departments are done independently without McDonald’s consent or approval. “Significant impact” In a post on LinkedIn, McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski writes that he recognizes that the war has affected the branches in the Middle East and the McDonalds brand. – This is disappointing and ill-founded. In all countries where we operate, including Muslim countries, McDonald’s is represented by local owners, writes Chris Kempczinsk, among others. The figures are worst in the Middle East, India, Malaysia and France. Yesterday, a broad majority in the Storting voted no to boycott and sanction Israel. Photo: Laik Hanbaly / news McDonalds also believes that the boycott has had a “significant impact” on the figures. McDonald’s shares fell 4 percent when the figures were presented. Refel Abeid believes that the figures give a clear impression that the boycott is working. – Unless Israel and the US stop their warfare in Gaza, I think it will have a say in the future of McDonalds, says Refel Abeid. McDonald’s boss Kempczinski seems to agree with Abeid. On LinkedIn, he writes that as long as the war lasts, the numbers will also be affected. Boycotts also Starbucks It is not only McDonalds that has been affected by boycotts. Companies such as Starbucks, Nestlé, Coca-Cola are also affected. The coffee chain Starbucks is one of several American companies that have been hit by boycotts. Photo: Elizabeth Frantz The coffee chain Starbucks also presented a worse result than expected. Director Laxman Narasimhan believed it is also because of the war in Gaza. In addition to the fact that sales had decreased in countries in the Middle East, sales were also lower at home in the USA. There have also been a number of demonstrations outside the coffee chain in several countries. – Many of our stores have been subjected to vandalism. We see protests that are influenced by a misrepresentation of what we stand for, the Starbucks boss has previously stated about the boycott.
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McDonalds is losing money on the war in Gaza – Rafel is one of those boycotting – news Culture and entertainment
