Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Jerry Greenfield has quit the ice cream brand he launched almost half a century ago, arguing the Vermont-based company has lost its independence since UK parent Unilever put a stop to its social activism.
In a letter to the consumer group shared with the Financial Times, Greenfield said he could no longer “in good conscience” remain an employee of a business that had been “silenced” by Unilever despite a merger agreement that protected the brand’s social mission.
“That independence existed in no small part because of the unique merger agreement” that he and fellow co-founder Ben Cohen had negotiated with Unilever, Mr Greenfield wrote.
“It’s profoundly disappointing to come to the conclusion that that independence, the very basis of our sale to Unilever, is gone.”
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Mr Greenfield’s resignation is the latest chapter in a dispute that has simmered since Unilever in 2021 backtracked on an agreement allowing Ben & Jerry’s to stop selling ice cream in occupied Palestinian territories, following an outcry in Israel.
Mr Greenfield and Mr Cohen set up Ben & Jerry’s, known for flavours such as Phish Food and Chunky Monkey, in 1978 in Vermont. After selling to Unilever in 2000, the pair remained employees of the brand to help maintain its founding social mission, but had no control over operations.
Mr Greenfield’s letter comes as Unilever prepares to spin out its ice cream division, whose brands also include Wall’s and Magnum, in mid-November. The new business, The Magnum Ice Cream Company, will list in Amsterdam with secondary listings in London and New York.
In advance of TMICC’s first capital markets day last week, Mr Cohen and Mr Greenfield published an open letter to the board and potential investors, calling for the brand to be “released”, and arguing that by eroding the social mission, Unilever had devalued Ben & Jerry’s.
Mr Cohen and Mr Greenfield have been looking for investors to help them buy the brand back, but Unilever has dismissed the idea on a number of occasions, insisting it is not for sale. Mr Cohen told the FT last week that they had interest from investors representing enough money to put forward an offer.
“The problem is that Unilever and Magnum don’t want to sell, so they are not allowing any of these potential investors to see the financials,” he said. Mr Cohen would not say who the investors were but said they shared the brand’s values.
Ben & Jerry’s independent board, established as part of the merger agreement to protect the brand’s values, is suing Unilever for violating the merger agreement, arguing that the parent company has prevented the brand from speaking out on social and political issues.
“It’s an incredible waste of energy and time on the part of both parties,” Mr Cohen said. “They say they believe in the social mission of Ben & Jerry’s, but they are thwarting it. If you love it, let it go.”
A TMICC spokesperson said it would be “forever grateful” to Mr Greenfield for his role in co-founding the company, but that it “disagreed with his perspective” and had sought to engage both co-founders in a “constructive conversation” on how to strengthen the brand.
Speaking to the FT after the capital markets day, TMICC chief executive Peter ter Kulve said the dispute between the two sides was a “simple” governance issue.
The company had aligned with Ben & Jerry’s board “for a very long time”, Mr ter Kulve said, until it “started reinterpreting our original purchase agreement”. – Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2025
