Ben & Jerry's co-founder Jerry Greenfield has departed the company citing social activism concerns, claiming the ice cream brand has been 'silenced' by its parent company.
In a statement that co-founder Ben Cohen posted on X, Greenfield expressed being "profoundly disappointed" to "come to the conclusion that [the brand's] independence, the very basis of our sale to Unilever, has gone."
Last week, both founders released joint statements urging the board of The Magnum Ice Cream Company (TMICC) and Magnum's prospective investors to demand the brand's release from the conglomerate, as reported by .
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Within these letters, Cohen and Greenfield conveyed similar concerns: that their social justice mission had been "eroded" and that "the company's voice has been muted."
'Ben & Jerry's has been silenced'
The correspondence indicated that decisions "made by Unilever" affecting the brand's campaigning efforts encompass positions on Gaza, indigenous rights, the Trump administration, and DEI.
Ben and Jerry's was acquired by Unilever in 2000, though it is currently - alongside Magnum and Wall's - being separated into The Magnum Ice Cream Company.
TMICC is set to float later this year, whilst Unilever will maintain a 20 per cent holding for up to five years. "For more than twenty years under [Unilever's] ownership, Ben & Jerry's stood up and spoke out in support of peace, justice and human rights... not as abstract concepts, but in relation to real events happening in our world," Greenfield stated in his resignation announcement.
"Our shared humanity has never been more important, and yet Ben & Jerry's has been silenced, sidelined for fear of upsetting those in power."
He expressed that Ben & Jerry's has "always been about more than just ice-cream... it was a way to spread love and invite others into the fight for equity, justice and a better world".