The most influential group of genocide scholars in the world concur that Israel’s actions in Gaza fall under the legal umbrella of genocide, citing what they claim is a plan to annihilate the Palestinian population.
Kraft Heinz is set to split into two different companies, one focused on groceries and the other on sauces and spreads.
The food manufacturing giant announced the breakup on Tuesday after it never achieved the growth expected when it was formed a decade ago.
The spinoff, which is expected to close in the second half of 2026, is the latest in a series of rearrangements among major global consumer brands that once embraced the conglomerate model, but are now rethinking their business structure amid sluggish sales, depressed valuations, and tariffs.
One of the companies, currently called Global Taste Elevation Co, will include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac &, Cheese, the Kraft Heinz Company said.
The other, currently called North American Grocery Co, will include legacy brands like Maxwell House, Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables. The official names of the two companies have not been released yet.
Wall Street had anticipated the breakup after the company said in May that it would look for opportunities to boost shareholder value. As of 11am in New York (15: 00 GMT), the stock is down more than 5 percent.
The 2015 merger that Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway helped engineer alongside Brazilian private equity firm 3G Capital created a $45bn company, with a goal of cutting costs and boosting growth in iconic brands such as Heinz Beanz, Jell-O and Philadelphia cream cheese. Instead, shares have lost about 60 percent of their value in that time as consumers reined in spending, particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2021, Kraft Heinz sold both its Planters nut business and its natural cheese business, vowing to reinvest the money into higher-growth brands like P3 protein snacks and Lunchables. But the company continued to struggle, and Kraft Heinz’s net sales fell 3 percent in 2024.
“For investors, the move could unlock value in the near-term, but the execution risks are clear: unless both entities invest in innovation and defend against private-label encroachment, the breakup may not achieve more than a temporary financial lift”, eMarketer analyst Suzy Davidkhanian said.
The grocery unit will be headed by Kraft Heinz’s current top boss Carlos Abrams-Rivera, while the company seeks potential CEO candidates for the sauces unit.
The company expects the split to cost up to $300m, but anticipates reducing much of that expense quickly.
Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, claimed that Moscow and Washington had come to terms with the three-and-a-half-year conflict and that the United States was listening to its arguments for the invasion of Ukraine.
After speaking with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Tuesday, Putin said, “Now we see this mutual understanding, it’s noticeable.”
We’re delighted to hear this, and we’re optimistic that the constructive dialogue will continue, Putin continued.
The only European leader scheduled to attend China’s Victory Day parade on Wednesday is the Slovak prime minister, who has opposed Western sanctions against Russia and has spoken out against Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Putin’s remarks come as Moscow is still being pressured by US President Donald Trump’s administration to end Ukraine’s war. In an effort to put pressure on the Kremlin, Washington has increased tariffs on India for purchases of Russian oil.
No agreement has been reached to bring an end to Europe’s most bloody war since World War II, despite Trump’s claim that he had made “great progress” after meeting Putin last month in Alaska.
Russia’s leaders in Ukraine and the rest of Europe have argued that the country isn’t serious about ending the conflict, and they claim that Putin could take further action against Russia if it wins.
Putin, however, refuted these claims, calling them “horror stories” and “hysteria” propagated by “incompetent people” who wanted to portray Russia as an enemy.
During the discussions in Beijing, Putin told Fico, “We have never objected to this.”
This is another issue for NATO, he said, adding that “we consider this unacceptable for ourselves.”
The Russian leader added that there were “options” for what he had said to Trump during the Alaska summit regarding the security of Ukraine.
He said, “It seems to me that this is a chance to reach consensus.”
According to Al Jazeera’s Dorsa Jabbari, who is based in Moscow, Putin reiterated that Russia should “look out for its own security” during discussions with Fico.
She pointed out that Russia must be involved in discussions regarding any kind of security guarantees for Ukraine, as Putin stated.
Other Western European leaders have remained in favor of Ukraine despite Fico telling Putin that Slovakia was “extremely interested” in standardizing relations with Russia.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated on Tuesday that he would recommend Geneva as a potential location for Thursday ceasefire talks. In an effort to put an end to the war, Trump had suggested Zelenskyy and Putin meet.
Difficulty of European countries will also come out for a meeting of the “coalition of the willing” to discuss the post-war security situation in Ukraine on Tuesday.
How a neglected Spanish port was transformed and an urban revival was brought to life by the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao.
Nestle has fired CEO Laurent Freixe after just one year in the job following an investigation into an undisclosed “romantic relationship”, ousting its second chief executive in a year and throwing the Swiss food giant into its deepest leadership chaos in decades.
Freixe’s sudden dismissal followed an investigation into an undisclosed romantic relationship with a direct subordinate that breached Nestle’s code of business conduct, Nestle said late on Monday.
Freixe was replaced by Nespresso chief Philipp Navratil, a rising star at the world’s largest food company as it battles slowing sales, the impact of United States tariffs and eroding investor confidence after years of underperformance.
The Frenchman’s predecessor Mark Schneider failed to cope with the challenge, and it cost him his job in August 2024. Paul Bulcke, CEO from 2008 to 2016, will step down as chairman in April and will be replaced by Pablo Isla, a former CEO of Spanish fashion retailer Inditex.
“The loss of two CEOs and a chairman in a year is of historic proportions for Nestle,” said Ingo Speich, head of corporate governance and sustainability at Deka, a top 30 Nestle investor.
“The new CEO needs to fix the business model and bring volumes back. He needs to do better M&A [mergers and acquisitions] and focus more on emerging markets.”
The upheaval underscores the struggle not only at Nestle but also other consumer goods companies to reignite sales and recover stock values as the post-pandemic cost-of-living crisis drives consumers towards cheaper alternatives. Meanwhile, US tariffs threaten to further inflate prices and alienate already price-sensitive shoppers.
Shares in the maker of Nescafe and KitKat chocolate bars were down 0.8 percent in Zurich by 1:18pm (11:18 GMT).
The company said concerns about a possible relationship were raised by staff via the company’s internal reporting channel, Speak Up, although an initial investigation was unsubstantiated. Freixe had initially denied the relationship to the board, a company spokesperson said.
When staff concerns persisted, Nestle said it ordered an investigation overseen by Bulcke and Lead Independent Director Isla with the support of independent outside counsel. Swiss media reported that Swiss lawyers from the Baer & Karrer law firm helped with the inquiry.
Freixe, who spent 39 years with Nestle, will receive no exit package, the company told the Reuters news agency.
In a short statement, Bulcke thanked Freixe for his years of service at Nestle but said the dismissal was a “necessary decision”.
His dismissal adds to a list of top executives forced to resign after investigations into their relationships with colleagues.
Energy giant BP’s former CEO Bernard Looney and McDonald’s CEO Steve Easterbrook were both removed for failing to disclose relationships with colleagues.
The Swiss financial news website Inside Paradeplatz reported that Freixe met the woman in 2022 before he became CEO and when he was head of Nestle’s Latin America business.
Freixe was not immediately available to comment when contacted via email. The identity of the female subordinate has not been made public.
Swiss law does not prohibit relationships between senior executives nor does it require disclosure although most large companies have internal codes of conduct that require they are disclosed.
Corporate governance expert Peter V Kunz from the University of Bern said he was not familiar with Nestle’s rules but said requirements at most public companies were broadly similar.
“In this respect, Mr Freixe’s behaviour – regardless of whether it was legal or not – seems to me to be simply stupid and incomprehensible in this day and age,” Kunz told Reuters, adding that he did not think investors had grounds for legal action against Nestle.
Nestle’s shares, a bedrock of the Swiss stock exchange, have lost almost a third of their value over the past five years, underperforming their European peers.
Freixe’s appointment failed to halt the slide, and the company’s shares shed 17 percent of their value during his leadership, disappointing investors.
One top 20 Nestle investor welcomed news of the change, saying Freixe had been a disappointment and bringing in Navratil was an opportunity for a more ambitious overhaul.
The new CEO needs to slim down the company, cut costs and above all reduce the headcount, the investor, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter, said, adding that it is also crucial for the company to raise organic growth to boost volumes.
“The cash flow must cover the dividend,” the investor said. “That’s an absolute priority.”
In July, Nestle launched a review of its underperforming vitamins business, which could lead to the divestment of some brands after first-half sales volumes missed expectations.
Freixe’s dismissal was featured on the front page of Swiss newspapers with Neue Zuercher Zeitung noting that Nestle had lost its “legendary stability” during which CEOs stayed on for years before eventually becoming chairmen.
AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould said the company would likely face a period of uncertainty over whether Navratil will follow the same path as his predecessor.
The defense wrapped up its arguments in mid-August, while the prosecution presented its case in July. Sessions will be held until September 12 according to Brazil’s Supreme Court.
Bolsonaro, who denies any wrongdoing, is accused of five counts, including conspiracy to assassinate the current leftist president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and a justice of the Supreme Court, as well as involvement in an armed criminal organization.
Before the Supreme Court hears his verdict and sentences, along with those of seven co-defendants, the former president “was not going to attend at least, not his first day,” according to Al Jazeera’s Monica Yanakiew, a reporter from Brasilia.
She noted that Bolsonaro has been under house arrest since August 4 and that his attorneys anticipate a conviction, claiming that there is “overwhelming evidence pointing to several crimes, including those alleged to be plotting a coup and attempting to undermine democracy.”
Additionally, the prosecution alleges that Bolsonaro’s supporters planned to assassinate Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes and President Lula.
They also contend that a riot on January 8, 2023 in Brasilia, which occurred when Bolsonaro supporters stormed Congress, the Supreme Court, and the presidential palace one week after Lula took office, evoking a US Capitol attack on January 6, 2021 by Bolsonaro ally Donald Trump, was intended to stoke a military coup and remove the new president.
A conviction on the coup plot charge alone could result in a 12-year prison term.
Brazil’s former president has already been denied the right to run for office until 2030. After discovering that he abused his position and made baseless allegations about the electronic voting system, the country’s top electoral court imposed the ban.
According to a federal police investigation, Bolsonaro’s campaign against him included spreading false information as part of a multifaceted plan to maintain power.
According to Yanakiew, the incident “really brought Brazil and the United States’ relations to a very, very low point.”
Trump is currently slapding a steep 50 percent tariff on Brazilian imports while denouncing the trial as a “witch hunt.”
While the US Department of State punished Alexandre de Moraes, the justice in charge of the case, for his remarks, Bolsonaro’s allies have reacted with nationalist sentiments.
Eduardo Bolsonaro, the former president’s son and current Congress member, relocated to the US earlier this year and had previously fought for US sanctions to be lifted.
Brazilian authorities also consider Jair Bolsonaro a potential flight risk, and the Supreme Court has mandated increased security, including in-person surveillance around his home and vehicle inspections ahead of the verdict phase.
Bolsonaro’s trial breaks with Brazil’s longstanding practice of impunity. Bolsonaro lauds the country’s dark era, which was perpetuated by the 1979 Amnesty Law, in regards to military officials who had committed abuses during the dictatorship.