Jameson will no longer be exported to Russia, distiller confirms

Bottles of Jameson whiskey, produced by Irish Distillers Ltd., are seen as they pass along the production line at the Pernod-Ricard SA bottling plant in Dublin. Picture credit: Aidan Crawley/Bloomberg

Irish Distillers has confirmed that Jameson will no longer be exported to Russia.

The announcement was made as part of parent company Pernod Ricard’s decision to cease exports of all its international brands to Russia.

In a statement from the company, a spokesperson said: "Pernod Ricard can confirm that it has stopped all exports of its international brands to Russia at the end of April 2023.

We will also cease the distribution of our portfolio in Russia, a process that we anticipate will take some months to complete.

"We are assessing how to adapt our local organisation in light of these decisions, while fully complying with all local legal regulations.

"Since the outbreak of the war our guiding principle has been the welfare of our teams wherever they are based, and we will continue to support our local employees during this process."

The company added that they have stood "firmly with the people of Ukraine" and are providing assistance to their local team members.

This assistance includes "direct financial assistance, psychological support, accommodation for some employees and their families in neighbouring countries and employment outside Ukraine for those who required it."

Activists staged a protest outside the Dublin headquarters of Irish Distillers and parent company Pernod-Ricard last month.

Following the initial invasion of Ukraine by Russia in early 2022, the global drinks company issued a statement saying that the company was “deeply shocked and saddened by the war that has unfolded in Ukraine”, and that it had suspended its exports to Russia.

However, in September 2022 the statement published on the company’s website was amended to remove any mention of suspending exports.