According to Ben & Jerry's, the dismissal of David Stever as the director was unlawful and was brought on by social and political activism carried on by the ice cream maker; Ben & Jerry's stated in federal court filings that this violated the merger agreement requiring consultation with the advisory committee of Ben & Jerry's board for the removal of any CEO.
The conflict that started brewing in 2021 has become a bigger issue between the two companies after Ben & Jerry's halted sales in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
The company also accused Unilever of suppressing its attempts to support Palestinian refugees and endorse resolutions to terminate military aid to Israel. In November 2024, Ben & Jerry's found itself once again in court against Unilever for alleged repression of its support for Palestinian refugees, to the extent of threatening a replacement of its board members and legal action against them on this ground.
In light of these tensions, the company's founders, Ben Cohen, and Jerry Greenfield, are pursuing the possibility of buying their company back from Unilever because of disagreements over how far the company should enter progressive politics. They sold the ice cream brand in 2000 for $326 million to Unilever. Although Unilever says the business is not for sale, it plans a spin-off of its ice cream units into a separate publicly traded company as part of its cost-cutting initiative.
The disputes with Unilever bring out the dilemma of how a social mission can conflict with a parent company's business ambition. The unfolding situation raises significant issues for corporate governance and brand integrity, alongside the role of social activism in business.
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