Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Jerry Greenfield has give up the ice-cream brand amid a dispute with its British proprietor Unilever, in accordance a submit by the opposite co-founder Ben Cohen.
Cohen shared a press release from Greenfield that stated quitting was “one of the hardest and most painful decisions” he’d ever made, as he accused Unilever of curbing the ice-cream maker’s skill to talk out on social causes.
“Standing up for the values of justice, equity, and our shared humanity has never been more important, and yet Ben & Jerry’s has been silenced, sidelined for fear of upsetting those in power,” Greenfield stated within the assertion. “And it’s happening at a time when our country’s current administration is attacking civil rights, voting rights of immigrants, women, and the LGBTQ community.”
“It’s with a broken heart that I’ve decided I can no longer, in good conscience, and after 47 years, remain an employee of Ben & Jerry’s,” he added.
Greenfield and Cohen offered their firm to Unilever in 2000 and, in line with Greenfield, had been assured the “independence to pursue (their) values.”
“For more than twenty years under their ownership, Ben & Jerry’s stood up and spoke out in support of peace, justice, and human rights, not as abstract concepts, but in relation to real events happening in our world,” Greenfield wrote.
“It’s profoundly disappointing to come to the conclusion that that independence, the very basis of our sale to Unilever, is gone,” he added.
NCS has reached out Unilever and its subsidiary, The Magnum Ice Cream Company, which controls Ben & Jerry’s and is being spunoff right into a separate entity.
A spokesperson for The Magnum Ice Cream Company informed Reuters on Wednesday that it disagreed “with Jerry’s perspective and (has) sought to engage both co-founders in constructive conversation.”
Last week, Greenfield and Cohen, which not controls the corporate they created, wrote an open letter addressed to the Magnum Ice Cream Company board. It requested that Ben & Jerry’s itself be spun off to function independently, following a number of disputes over the years about its views on a number of issues, together with criticism of President Donald Trump’s insurance policies and Israel’s struggle in Gaza.
In response, Unilever stated that Ben & Jerry’s is a “proud part” of the Magnum Ice Cream Company and isn’t on the market.
The ice-cream brand’s relationship with its British proprietor has been fraught in recent times. In 2021, Ben & Jerry’s ended its sales in occupied Palestinian territories, saying it’s inconsistent with the values of the socially acutely aware brand – a transfer that triggered backlash from Israel.
In March, Ben & Jerry’s accused Unilever of breaching its merger agreement for ousting its then-CEO David Stever over the brand’s public feedback on progressive issues. In January, the ice-cream company alleged that Unilever “unilaterally barred” a submit referencing abortion, local weather change and common healthcare as a result of it talked about President Donald Trump.
Late final 12 months, Ben & Jerry additionally filed a lawsuit towards Unilever, accusing the mum or dad firm of censoring its public statements to assist Palestinian refugees and resolutions to finish army help to Israel.
Unilever has rejected all these claims.