In a move described as “disappointing,” King Charles III has decided to revoke the royal warrants for Unilever and Cadbury, meaning these companies will no longer be recognized as suppliers to the royal family. The decision was announced late last week, marking the second set of royal warrant changes under Charles’ reign.
Royal warrants are given to companies that regularly provide goods or services to the Royal Household, allowing them to display the Royal Arms on their packaging.
The latest list of companies with royal warrants does not include Cadbury or Unilever, which owns brands such as Dove, Ben & Jerry’s, Magnum, Hellmann’s, and Best Foods. No specific reasons were provided for the revocation of the warrants.
Cadbury expressed its disappointment, particularly since it had held a royal warrant for 170 years, as stated in a recent release obtained by Fortune. The revocation of the warrants follows criticism directed at Unilever and Cadbury’s parent company, Mondelez, for continuing to operate and profit in Russia after the country’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
In June, the activist group B4Ukraine urged King Charles to revoke the warrants for several companies, including Mondelez and Unilever, claiming that their continued presence in Russia was contributing to the war.
Mondelez stated it was disappointed by the decision but respected it, while Unilever expressed pride in the long history of its brands supplying the royal household under previous monarchs. The royal family’s official website notes that royal warrants may not be renewed if the quality or supply of products or services is deemed insufficient by the Royal Household.
