The Meltdown At Nestlé

(MENAFN- Swissinfo) Nestlé's annual“All In” all-company meeting on Wednesday was an awkward one. The famously buttoned-down Swiss conglomerate has been beset by scandal that in just two weeks has unseated both its chief executive and chair. This content was published on September 22, 2025 - 10:38 10 minutes Madeleine Speed in London and Mercedes Ruehl in Zurich, Financial Times

Yet when outgoing chair Paul Bulcke spoke virtually to up to 277,000 Nestlé workers, 24 hours after the company announced he would be leaving early, he was in characteristically bullish form.

“He tried to sound cheerful, like it was not all a big deal,” one employee says.“He said I've decided to leave because the future is now . . . No one believed a word of it.”

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The revelation that boss of one year Laurent Freixe was conducting an undisclosed affair with a direct report has rocked a 159-year-old conglomerate that pioneered infant formula and milk chocolate before growing to become the world's largest food and beverage company. It now has thousands of brands ranging from KitKat chocolate bars to Maggi stock cubes and Purina pet food under its umbrella.

The handling of the saga by Nestlé's board has appalled the Swiss corporate establishment. As one of the largest companies on the Swiss stock exchange, with a bigger market capitalisation than the country's largest bank, UBS, Nestlé has long been placed on a pedestal on its home turf.

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