Greenfield said in the statement announcing his resignation that before agreeing to the merger with Unilever in 2000, he and Cohen negotiated the right to maintain their independence and continue supporting “peace, justice and human rights” through the brand.
“It’s profoundly disappointing to come to the conclusion that that independence, the very basis of our sale to Unilever, is gone,” Greenfield said. “And it’s happening at a time when our country’s current administration is attacking civil rights, voting rights, the rights of immigrants, women, and the LGBTQ community.”
A spokesperson for the Magnum Ice Cream Company, Unilever’s ice cream unit, said in an emailed statement that the company disagreed with Greenfield’s “perspective” and has “sought to engage both co-founders in a constructive conversation on how to strengthen Ben & Jerry’s powerful values-based position in the world”.
Over nearly half a century, Cohen and Greenfield grew Ben & Jerry’s from the small ice cream shop they opened out of a renovated gas station in Burlington, Vermont, into a global confectionary giant, with store locations and pints sold around the world. Along with its corporate activism, Ben & Jerry’s has become known for unique flavours – the company says it was the first to come up with cookie dough ice cream – and kooky, often hippie-inspired names like Cherry Garcia, Phish Food and Wavy Gravy.
In the social media post with Greenfield’s statement, Cohen said his partner’s legacy “deserves to be true to our values”.
Greenfield’s resignation comes as companies across the United States are facing pressure fuelled by the Trump administration to ditch diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, such as anti-racism training and Pride Month festivities. In January, Amazon removed its commitment to helping Black people live “free from fear”, while Missouri’s attorney general sued Starbucks in February in federal court, alleging that the coffee chain’s DEI practices have made its workforce “more female and less white”.
Following Ben & Jerry’s 2021 decision to stop selling ice cream in the occupied West Bank, Unilever shares dropped, prompting US investors to sue for damages the following year. Unilever announced in 2022 that the ice cream brand had been sold to an Israeli licensee and that sales in Palestinian territory occupied by Israel would continue. The ice cream brand wrote on X that it did not agree with the sale and that it still views its operations in those disputed areas as “inconsistent with Ben & Jerry’s values”.
“Standing up for the values of justice, equity and our shared humanity has never been more important, and yet Ben & Jerry’s has been silenced, sidelined for fear of upsetting those in power,” Greenfield said in his resignation statement. “It’s easy to stand up and speak out when there’s nothing at risk. The real test of values is when times are challenging and you have something to lose.”
Sign up to Herald Premium Editor’s Picks, delivered straight to your inbox every Friday. Editor-in-Chief Murray Kirkness picks the week’s best features, interviews and investigations. Sign up for Herald Premium here.