Ben & Jerry’s Co-founder to Launch Pro-Palestine Ice Cream After Unilever Block

Ben Cohen, co-founder of Ben & Jerry’s, announced today he will independently produce an ice cream flavor expressing solidarity with Palestine, after alleging his former parent company, Unilever, blocked the initiative.

Cohen stated that Unilever and its ice cream division, Magnum, unlawfully prevented Ben & Jerry’s from “honouring its social mission.” He revealed plans for a watermelon-flavored sorbet, a fruit that has become a symbol of Palestinian solidarity due to its colors mirroring the Palestinian flag. “I’m doing what they couldn’t,” Cohen said in a video posted yesterday. “I’m making a watermelon-flavoured ice cream that calls for permanent peace in Palestine and calls for repairing the damage that was done there.”

This development intensifies the ongoing dispute between Ben & Jerry’s and Unilever, which acquired the ice cream maker in 2000. In 2021, Ben & Jerry’s announced it would no longer sell products in Israeli-occupied territories, a decision that led Unilever to sell its Israeli operation to a local licensee. The move to create a separate activist brand, Ben’s Best, allows Cohen to pursue social causes independently. This situation highlights the increasing tension between corporate ownership and a brand’s commitment to social activism, a dynamic that can impact consumer perception and brand loyalty.

Cohen’s new flavors will be developed under Ben’s Best, initially established in 2016 to support Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign. Co-founder Jerry Greenfield recently stepped down from Ben & Jerry’s, citing concerns over the company’s compromised independence following Unilever’s restrictions on social activism. Unilever has been contacted for comment regarding the allegations.

Cohen plans to solicit ideas for the sorbet’s name and ingredients, and will continue to develop flavors addressing issues Ben & Jerry’s was allegedly prevented from publicly supporting.