More than one in three people say they are boycotting the brand, which is seen as supporting the party in Israel’s war on Gaza, led by oil-rich Gulf states and large Muslim-majority countries.
The latest edition of public affairs firm Edelman’s annual Trust Barometer has highlighted how stark divisions over the war are leading consumers around the world to take a stance on their wallets.
The survey polled 15,000 consumers in 15 countries, including France, Saudi Arabia, the UK and the US.
The poll didn’t say which side respondents took on the war, but of the top five countries engaged in boycott signs over Gaza, three are Muslim-majority nations: Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Indonesia. India also has a sizeable Muslim minority. The fifth country was Germany.
The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement has gained momentum around the world as it aims to put pressure on Israel for its violations of international law and repression of the Palestinians. However, it also faced fierce opposition in the US and other Western countries, where a significant number of the population sympathizes with Israel.
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Saudi Arabia saw the highest number of respondents, 71 percent, who said they were boycotting brands because of their perceived support for one party.
The population of Saudi Arabia is overwhelmingly pro-Palestinian.
A December poll by the Washington Institute for Near East Affairs, a pro-Israel think tank, found that 96 percent of Saudi citizens believe Arab countries should cut ties with Israel in response to its war in Gaza.
Before the war, the US was actively working on an agreement that would allow Israel and Saudi Arabia to normalize relations.
In the UAE, 57 percent of respondents said they would boycott brands during the war.
In Indonesia, the world’s largest Muslim-majority country, more than one in two people also said they would boycott the brands.
The number of respondents from Arab and Muslim countries boycotting products because of the war in Gaza is significantly higher than the global average of 37 percent, or slightly more than one in three respondents.
“Consumer Nationalism” Rises in the Gulf
Boycotts are felt in the boardrooms of Western corporations.
In March, retail giant Alshaya Group, which owns the rights to Starbucks in the Middle East, decided to begin laying off more than 2,000 employees in the region and North Africa, or four percent of its total workforce, as a result of consumer boycotts linked to Gaza.
Gaza war: Omanis boycott Western brands and fast food chains as many turn against the West
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McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski also said earlier this year that sales were weaker in Muslim-majority countries — such as Malaysia and Indonesia — as well as across the Middle East.
McDonald’s sparked outrage among pro-Palestinian activists in October when its Israeli franchise announced it was providing free meals to Israeli soldiers at its locations in the country. In Pakistan, the franchise cut prices and was forced to issue a statement distancing itself from McDonald’s in Israel.
“The continued impact of the war on the local business of these franchisees is disheartening and unwarranted,” Kempczinski told analysts on the company’s conference call on Monday.
Consumers in the Gulf region have long been a prize for Western corporations because their young population has relatively high purchasing power. Their oil and gas producing economies have not been hit by wars and crises like other Arab states since the Arab Spring.
Middle East Eye reported that consumers in Oman, a key Western partner, boycotted Western goods because of support given to Israel by the US and its allies. They switched from drinks like Mountain Dew to Kinsa, a Saudi brand of drinks. In Pakistan, local brands have started producing local products to replace Western soft drinks and cosmetics.
The survey also highlighted growing consumer nationalism in the Gulf states. The number of respondents in Saudi Arabia and the UAE who said they buy their country’s brands over foreign brands jumped by 13 and 10 points, respectively.