Ice cream giant launches unexpected court battle against its own parent company
Ben & Jerrys takes legal action against Unilever over statements about Palestinian refugees. The ice-cream maker claims its parent company blocks their right to speak about human-rights issues
In a surprising turn-of-events Ben & Jerrys filed a lawsuit against its parent company Unilever regarding statements about Palestinian refugees; the ice-cream maker states that Unilever blocks their public communication efforts
The Vermont-based company which was started back in 78ʼ claims Unilever broke a deal from about 2 years ago that gave Ben & Jerrys board power over social-mission decisions (this includes speaking up about world events). The ice-cream maker tried to make statements about: peace efforts refugee support and military aid changes
The conflict isnt new - these companies had issues before when Ben & Jerrys stopped west bank sales around 3 years ago. That led to some problems with investors; Unilever fixed it by selling the local division to an Israeli company
- Support for ceasefire calls
- Help for Palestinian refugees going to UK
- Backing student protests in US
- Questions about US military support to Israel
The ice-cream maker known for its social-activism stance since Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield started it has kept its independent board even after Unilever bought it in the early 2000s. Its worth noting that Cohen got arrested last year during some protests about wikileaks
Our heart goes out to all victims of the tragic events in the Middle East
Unilever which owns brands like Walls and Magnum wants to sell its ice-cream division; they said earlier this year that Ben & Jerrys activism is good for business - but the ice-cream makers board says theyll keep speaking up no matter who owns them
