Perhaps the most controversial of these is the company’s ongoing business in Russia – which has prompted the Ukrainian government to accuse it of bankrolling Putin’s war. It leaves Schumacher, a Dutchman tasked with steering the company back to basics, with a set of extremely knotty problems to solve – less than a month into his new job. Those figures – and the company’s fattening profit margins – may prove controversial as the Competition and Markets Authority prepares to take a deep dive into the prices being charged by food suppliers.Īt the same time, Unilever is grappling with serious problems in Russia, where its staff may be conscripted into the war with Ukraine and Vladimir Putin’s government is seizing control of western firms that opted to stay in the country. Mr Schumacher’s comments came as the FTSE 100 Marmite and Hellman’s maker revealed a surge in profits during the first half of the year, fuelled by price rises of almost 10pc.

The company claimed Britain had “passed peak inflation” as executives insisted they had shielded consumers rather than fleeced them. He also said Unilever was “very mindful” of the rising costs consumers face across Europe, with the price of kitchen staples soaring. Hein Schumacher, who took the helm at the start of this month, insisted that Unilever had acted responsibly after The Telegraph revealed at the weekend that it would comply if staff were called up to attack Ukraine. The new chief executive of Unilever defended its ethical record as questions mount up over so-called greedflation and its continued presence in Russia.

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