Dirk Van de Put

Dirk Van de Put (born 14 May 1960) is a Belgian businessman, and the chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Mondelez International since November 2017.

Early life Van de Put is a native of Mechelen, Antwerp Province, Belgium, and has a veterinary medicine degree from Ghent University, and a master's degree in business from the University of Antwerp. He is fluent in Dutch, English, French, Spanish, and Portuguese.

Career Van de Put worked for Coca-Cola, Mars Inc, Novartis and Groupe Danone, before becoming CEO of the Canadian frozen foods manufacturer McCain Foods in 2010.

Personal life Van de Put has Belgian and US citizenship.

Statements on activities in Russia during the Russo-Ukrainian War As CEO of Mondelez International, Van de Put has defended the continued operation of the company in Russia during the Russo-Ukrainian War. In an interview with the Financial Times, Van de Put stated that were Mondelez to leave Russia, the assets of the company would be left to "friends of Putin," which would generate more cash to fund Russia's war efforts than the amount of taxes the company currently pays to Russia. Van de Put further asserted that "here has been no shareholder pressure whatsoever" for Mondelez to end operations in Russia, and that shareholders do not "morally care" whether the company remains in Russia.

In an in-depth discussion as part of the BBC's Big Boss Interview series, Van de Put said: "I think over time you try to be neutral in the whole conflict. We're not trying to take any side."