Goods boycott costs Danish companies millions of euro

CONSUMER boycotts of Danish goods in Muslim countries in protest at the publication of caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed are costing Denmark’s companies millions, and have raised fears of irreparable damage to trade ties.

From Havarti cheese to Lego, Danish products have been yanked off the shelves of stores in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other countries around the Middle East as Muslims await an apology for the cartoons, which the Copenhagen government has said it cannot give.

The boycotts began in Saudi Arabia on January 26 when supermarkets either put up signs saying to stop buying Danish goods or removed products from shelves.

Since then it has spread to other Muslim nations, and even to Western stores doing business there. A Cairo supermarket run by France’s Carrefour has had signs, for example, saying that it is not offering Danish products “in solidarity with Muslims and Egyptians”. Carrefour said the store was a franchise run by a local company.

Carrefour said it is “strictly neutral” but “stores operated by our partners or franchises are free to make commercial decisions according to the local situations”.

Indonesia’s importers association began boycotting Danish goods yesterday, which it said made up e65 million in 2005, about 1% of the nation’s annual imports. In Syria, banners on walls and storefronts all call for consumers to avoid Danish products.

“It’s a situation that causes a great concern from our members,” said Henriette Soltoft, director of international market policy for the Confederation of Danish Industries.

“There’s also the fear (for the future) ... that the consumer will not remember exactly what happened, but they will remember the connection to Denmark,” she said, noting that the Middle East is seen as a growth area.

“Our good relations with these countries have been damaged but we don’t know yet to what extent - that we’ll see in the future and it will depend on how soon this crisis will be solved and how it will be solved.”

The drawings published by newspaper Jyllands-Posten in September have sparked protests, sometimes violent, in Muslim countries.