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Does Starbucks support Israel?

Starbucks Corporation

No records found9 sources checked

We have not yet found publicly recorded donations from Starbucks. Absence of records does not confirm absence of support.

Filed under: Coffee chains & brands · Fast food & restaurant chains · Companies that support Israel

Background

Starbucks has no recorded donations or support for Israel — and explicitly denies providing any. The company states it "has never contributed to any government or military operation in any way," and its longstanding official position is that neither Starbucks nor former CEO Howard Schultz "provide financial support to the Israeli government and/or the Israeli Army in any way." Starbucks has had no stores in Israel since exiting the market in 2003 over business challenges. It has no political action committee. Recurring social-media rumors trace back to Howard Schultz's personal views and awards, which are not corporate actions. In 2024, The Starbucks Foundation and licensee partners gave over $3 million to World Central Kitchen to provide meals to families in Gaza. The Hebrew and Arabic press dates both the rumor and the denial. ynet reported a protest outside the Beirut branch on 10 February 2010 whose participants said Schultz backed Israel and donated money to the Israeli army — their claim, with no payment documented — and noted that Starbucks had not traded in Israel since 2003, its branches having run two years without profit, after comparable protests in Beirut in 2002 and in Damascus, Cairo and Dubai. When boycott calls spread in October 2023, the company's Middle East business issued a statement, quoted by Al Jazeera, calling the claim a baseless rumor and saying that neither Starbucks nor Howard Schultz gives any financial support to the Israeli government or the Israeli army and that none of its profits went to either; it added that Starbucks has operated in the Middle East since 1999 under an exclusive licence with Kuwait's Alshaya Group, with about 1,900 cafés in 11 countries of the Middle East and North Africa and more than 19,000 staff. In March 2024 it was Alshaya, the licensee and not Starbucks, that cut more than 2,000 of those jobs, citing six months of difficult trading amid the boycott; ice reported the figure from Reuters. The Hebrew press also records the company declining to take a side. On 15 October 2023 ynet reported that Starbucks Workers United, the union representing more than 9,000 of its baristas, had posted "Solidarity with Palestine" days after the Hamas attack, and that local union branches in Chicago, Boston and Iowa had condemned Israel; after ynet published the story Starbucks said this was not the chain's position, that it "unequivocally condemn[s] acts of terror, hate and violence", that it disagreed with the union's statements and views, and that its employees' words and actions were theirs alone. That same report records boycott calls against Starbucks from the pro-Israel side, including by Republican senator Rick Scott. Calcalist reported the same accusation and the same denial on 6 March 2024.

Starbucks — For the Record (official) Times of Israel (2014 company statement) Cause IQ — Starbucks Foundation grantees ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer — Starbucks Foundation filings ynet (Hebrew, 2010) — protest at the Beirut branch Al Jazeera (Arabic, 2023) — Starbucks Middle East statement ice (Hebrew, 2024) — Alshaya cuts Starbucks jobs in the Middle East ynet (Hebrew, 2023) — Starbucks disavows its union's posts on Israel Calcalist (Hebrew, 2024) — Starbucks accused of supporting Israel

What we checked

Frequently asked questions

Did Starbucks donate money to Israel or Israeli causes?

No records found. We searched 9 public source types — news and official statements, nonprofit tax filings, SEC filings, and federal election records — and found no donations from Starbucks. The dated search log on this page shows exactly where we looked.

Where does this information come from?

Every record on this page links to its source — news reports, official company statements, tax filings, or government records. 9 distinct sources are cited for Starbucks. Our methodology page explains the full verification process.

Sources & citations

Record last updated: 2026-09-26

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