Middle East Boycott Over Muhammad Cartoons
Arla's sales were seriously affected by a boycott of Danish products in the Middle East in 2006. Transnational anger among Muslims over satirical cartoons of Muhammed was the immediate cause of this. After the Danish government refused to condemn the cartoons or meet with eleven concerned ambassadors from Muslim nations, a boycott was organised, starting in Saudi Arabia and spreading across the Middle East. The Middle East is Arla's largest market outside of Europe.
On 3 February 2006, the company said that sales in the Middle East had stopped completely, costing the company US$2 million a day. Soon after the boycott began to affect Arla's sales, the Danish government met with Muslim ambassadors, the newspaper issued apologetic statements. Unfortunately for Arla, the boycott continued undiminished for some time.
In March 2006, Arla took out full-page advertising in Saudi Arabia, apologising for the cartoons and indicating Arla's great respect for Islam in the country. This raised controversy back in Denmark, where women's organisations and some Danish politicians criticised Arla, and called on Danish women to boycott Arla's products in Denmark.
In April 2006, the company said that its products are being placed back in shops in the Middle East. Before the boycott, it supplied 50,000 shops in the area. It announced that many of its largest clients in Saudi Arabia would start selling its butter and cheese on 8 April. Arla has started sponsoring humanitarian causes in the Middle East in order to reduce bad feelings from consumers.
Read more about this topic: Arla Foods
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