We all know and love the warm, inviting chocolate bars of Max Brenner. We especially love their mocha coffee’s on a cold Monday morning. However debate has run in the last 18 months or so surrounding the owners of Max Brenner, and the possibility of our hard-earned dollars going towards the conflict in the Middle-East that has seen thousands of Palestinians civilians being killed.
Patrick Harrison is a Palestinian solidarity campaigner who calls for people to boycott Max Brenner, despite claims from the franchise that there is no link between their Australian stores and Israel. He had this to say in response to those claims:
“Max Brenner Australia’s relationship to the Strauss group is plain to see, although the company tries to hide it. In an interview in the Australian, the general manager of Max Brenner in Australia, Yael Kaminsky, said Max Brenner Australia “never got involved with the Strauss Group … we only have the franchise rights in Australia and we report to the office of Max Brenner that is based in New York”.
Yet the Strauss Group’s annual report last year said Max Brenner International in the US is wholly owned by Strauss USA, itself a wholly owned subsidiary of Strauss Group Ltd.
The report said “the [Strauss] Group operates chocolate bars” in Australia.
Boycotting Max Brenner has nothing to do with the identity of the company’s owners, just as the campaign to boycott Veolia for its operations in the occupied territories has nothing to do with the religion or race of its boss. It is about raising awareness of the Israeli government’s crimes in Palestine.
If the owners of Max Brenner are as truly independent of ties with Israeli apartheid as they claim, they can easily put an end to protests outside their stores by rebranding their store, handing back the franchise rights, and sending a signal that people of all backgrounds condemn Israel’s crimes.”
(Full article here: https://www.greenleft.org.au/node/54100)
With a Max Brenner on campus here at UNSW and such a multi-cultural student population, it’s
interesting to consider the implications this may have for the store based at Terraces. UNSW Against Crap Coffee is heavily against any coffee that either sources unethically or behaves questionably in a business sense. If the allegations are true, we can’t help but to condemn Max Brenner and encourage the boycott.
What do you think? If you’re a happy Max Brenner customer, let us know by commenting below.