Jerry of Ben & Jerry's resigns, says ice cream company has been 'silenced' by parent group Unilever

One of Ben & Jerry’s founders, Jerry Greenfield, has resigned from the ice cream company, saying that its independence had been lost and its social activism “silenced” under the control of its parent company, Unilever.

Greenfield’s business partner, Ben Cohen, announced the move on social media early Wednesday. The decision comes after years of increasing tension between Unilever, which acquired the ice cream company in 2000, and the Ben & Jerry’s founders, who have long been outspoken on social issues.

“I never thought I would have to write this, but after 47 years Jerry has made the difficult decision to stand down from the company we built together,” Cohen wrote on Instagram, along with a statement from Greenfield.

In his statement, Greenfield said he could no longer “in good conscience” remain at the company he started with Cohen in 1978.

Greenfield, 74, said that the “independence to pursue our values” that had been guaranteed for Ben & Jerry’s when it merged with Unilever in 2000 had been lost.

“Standing up for the values of justice, equity, and our shared humanity has never been more important,” Greenfield wrote. But, he added, “Ben & Jerry’s has been silenced, sidelined for fear of upsetting those in power.”

When the consumer goods giant Unilever bought Ben & Jerry’s, it agreed to let the ice cream maker keep an independent board to oversee the brand, allowing Ben & Jerry’s to place “guardrails” around its social activism. The unusual arrangement was intended to give the founders continued control despite the sale of their company.

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

Last year, Ben & Jerry’s sued Unilever, accusing it of trying to dismantle the independent board and seeking to prevent it from calling for a ceasefire for the war in the Gaza Strip. Unilever rejected the claims.

Unilever is in the process of spinning off its ice cream unit, which includes Ben & Jerry’s, into a new entity, Magnum Ice Cream Co. The new company issued a statement on Wednesday thanking Greenfield for “his service and support over many decades.”

“We disagree with his perspective and have sought to engage both co-founders in a constructive conversation on how to strengthen Ben & Jerry’s powerful values-based position in the world,” the statement said.

Unilever did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Last week, Cohen, 74, protested outside the hotel where the Magnum Ice Cream Co. was holding a presentation of its plans for investors, Reuters reported. Cohen posted images of himself protesting on Instagram and wrote in a caption, “If Ben & Jerry’s is going to stand up for what matters, we need to be independent.”

Cohen and Greenfield have long been outspoken about political issues, including supporting the Black Lives Matter and criminal justice reform movements.

In 2021, Ben & Jerry’s said it would end sales in the Israeli-occupied territories, saying it was “inconsistent” with the company’s values. And in May, Cohen was arrested after he interrupted a Senate committee hearing to protest Congress’ funding for Israel’s military as it wages war against Hamas in Gaza.

This year, Ben & Jerry’s accused Unilever of firing its chief executive because he had permitted the ice cream maker to speak out on political issues. Unilever said it had made repeated attempts to engage the Ben & Jerry’s independent board, as per the merger agreement.

“From the very beginning, Ben and I believed that our values and the pursuit of justice were more important than the company itself,” Greenfield wrote on Wednesday. “If the company couldn’t stand up for the things we believed, then it wasn’t worth being a company at all.”