Israeli beverage firm SodaStream, amid intense boycott pressure from the international community, announced on Wednesday that it was closing a controversial factory located in an occupied West Bank settlement, while simultaneously reporting a 9% decline in sales.The company manufactures a device for making carbonated drinks at home, and, according to AFP, was embroiled in a row earlier this year involving Hollywood actress Scarlett Johansson.
SodaStream said that it would relocate the factory by the end of 2015.
According to the firm, the plant closure would ‘improve the operational efficiency’ of the group, now listed on the New York stock exchange since 2010. Another factory in northern Israel will additionally close, according to SodaStream’s website.
