Russian Snickers bars unexpectedly appear in UK shops despite sanctions

6 comments

1. Lmao.

   When importing a commodity from a sanctioned country involved in the biggest war in Europe since ww2 is cheaper than producing it yourself, you know things are bad.

2. Based on the photo these are very likely being sold in convenience stores, which is a sector that has long been associated with money laundering and the sale of stolen goods. They often have illegal supply chains, which is almost certainly what has happened here.

   There is also a proliferation of ‘American candy shops’ which have long been fronts for money laundering and often sell fake goods.

   This is a major problem in the U.K. and is one that needs to be taken much more seriously than it currently is. Here’s a sample of recent news articles for those interested:

   https://www.thegrocer.co.uk/comment-and-opinion/not-all-convenience-stores-are-innocent-victims-of-retail-crime/711081.article

   https://www.conveniencestore.co.uk/news/924-arrested-in-uks-largest-crackdown-on-high-street-business-crime/711805.article

   https://www.conveniencestore.co.uk/news/mps-hold-first-parliamentary-discussion-on-criminal-high-street-businesses/712203.article

   https://www.amlintelligence.com/2025/11/latest-almost-3000-uk-shops-raided-in-crackdown-on-money-laundering-fronts/

3. The Coca-Cola i buy from my local shop has cryillic names.

   I have no idea why or how. I just know that they are half price.

   It’s entirely possible that these bottles and sweets were intended for Russia but are now being redirected to Europe.

4. Y’all do know that all this geopolitical thing is bullshit right ?

   The politicians dont sanction bc they genuinely see Russia as the bad guy. Their reputation simply benefits from supporting the idea of imposing sanctions. They don’t care what happens to Ukraine, they don’t care if Russia sells oil or not, they don’t care about the import of Russian products.

   If their reputation would benefit from supporting Russia instead, they would do it without hesitation.

5. Not very surprising. There is probably Russian food in the rest of Europe as well:

   >None of the EU’s sanctions adopted against Russia prevent the supply of agri-food, medical equipment or medicines for the general population. Agricultural machinery per se is also not subject to any export ban. 

   >None of the sanctions target the trade in agricultural and food products, including cereals and fertilisers, between third countries and Russia. 

   [https://commission.europa.eu/topics/eu-solidarity-ukraine/eu-sanctions-against-russia-following-invasion-ukraine_en](https://commission.europa.eu/topics/eu-solidarity-ukraine/eu-sanctions-against-russia-following-invasion-ukraine_en)

6. Weird coincidence to see this post! Was scrolling through Alibaba earlier and noticed they’re featuring Russian food products to buy in bulk, like Oreos and chocolate. I was wondering why.

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