Icecream giant Ben and Jerry’s sues Unilever for silencing pro-Palestine stance

Internationally renowned ice cream brand Ben & Jerry’s has filed a lawsuit against their parent company, Unilever, for silencing its attempts to show support for Palestinians suffering in Gaza, alleging that Unilever threatened to dismantle its board and sue its members over the issue.

Reuters has reported that the latest case is another “sign of the long-simmering tensions between Ben & Jerry’s and consumer products maker Unilever.”

The clash started between the ice cream brand and Unilever 2021 when the former said it would stop selling its products in Israeli regions and occupied West Bank because it doesn’t align with its values. 

This led some investors to divest from Unilever shares.

Subsequently, the ice cream-making brand sued Unilever for selling its business in Israel to its licensee there, which in turn allowed marketing in the West Bank and Israel to continue.

The latest legal action also claimed that Unilever has breached the terms of a confidential settlement agreed two years ago in 2022.

The ice cream brand argued in the lawsuit that as part of the agreement, Unilever is required to “respect and acknowledge the Ben & Jerry’s independent board’s primary responsibility over Ben & Jerry’s social mission.” 

It further claimed that “Ben & Jerry’s has on four occasions attempted to publicly speak out in support of peace and human rights.”

It outrightly blamed that “Unilever has silenced each of these efforts.”

Ben & Jerry’s firstly tried to call for a ceasefire, secondly attempted to express support for the safe passage of Palestinian refugees to Britain, thirdly back students protesting at US colleges against civilian deaths in Gaza, and last but not least, advocate for a halt in US military aid to Israel, but has been blocked by Unilever for this.

The lawsuit acknowledged that the independent board separately spoke out on some of the matters, but the company was largely silent.

Ben & Jerry’s categorically stated that Peter ter Kulve, Unilever’s head of ice cream, said he was more concerned about the “continued perception of anti-Semitism” regarding the ice cream brand voicing its opinions on Palestinian refugees.

Additionally the legal action is being taken because Unilever was also required under the confidential 2022 agreement to make a total of $5 million in payments to Ben & Jerry’s for the brand to make donations to human rights groups of its choosing but Unilever objected to the groups selected by Ben and Jerry’s by saying that they are “too critical of the Israeli government.”

Notably, the ice cream makers selected the left-leaning, pro-Palestinian Jewish Voice for Peace and the San Francisco Bay Area Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, among others.

In March, earlier this year, Unilever also decided to spin off its ice cream business, which includes Ben & Jerry’s, to simplify its holdings by the end of 2025.

In an emailed statement to Reuters, Unilever has said, “Our heart goes out to all victims of the tragic events in the Middle East. We reject the claims made by the B&J social mission board, and we will defend our case very strongly.”

Additionally, the parent company declined to comment on the matter.

Ben & Jerry’s has positioned itself as a very socially conscious brand since its establishment. Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield founded the company in a renovated gas station in 1978. It continued working according to its mission until after Unilever acquired it in 2000.