Ben & Jerry’s Jerry Greenfield quits in independence row with Unilever

Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Jerry Greenfield has stepped down from the ice cream maker after nearly 50 years amid an ongoing row with parent company Unilever.

In an open letter shared on Wednesday by the eponymous brand’s co-founder Ben Cohen, Greenfield dubbed the decision “painful,” but said that the Unilever had silenced the company’s ability to speak up on global issues, including the conflict in Gaza.

“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,” Greenfield wrote in a post on X.

The departure comes despite a merger agreement with Unilever — which bought Ben & Jerry’s for $326 million in 2000 — that was expected to safeguard the Vermont-based company’s independence.

Ben & Jerry’s has long been vocal on social activism issues. However, it came to a head with its owner Unilever since at least 2021, when the ice-cream maker said it would stop selling its products in the Israeli-occupied West Bank in response to the conflict in Gaza.

“It’s profoundly disappointing to come to the conclusion that that independence, the very basis of our sale to Unilever, is gone,” Greenfield wrote.

Unilever is in the process of spinning off its ice cream business into a new entity known as the Magnum Ice Cream Company, which is set to list in November.

A Unilever spokesperson said the company disagreed with Greenfield’s perspective, and that it had sought to “engage both co-founders in a constructive conversation on how to strengthen Ben & Jerry’s powerful values-based position.”

“We remain committed to Ben & Jerry’s unique three-part mission – product, economic and social – and remain focused on carrying forward the legacy of peace, love, and ice cream of this iconic, much-loved brand. Ben & Jerry’s is a proud and thriving part of The Magnum Ice Cream Company and we look forward to further building on its success,” the spokesperson added.