Ben & Jerry’s says parent company Unilever has eliminated its chief executive, David Stever, in a dispute over the political activities of the ice cream company.
The allegations were part of a lawsuit filed in US court by Ben & Jerry, who said Unilever violated the merger agreement by attempting to silence its “social mission.”
It comes a month after the ice cream company accused Unilever of demanding publicly criticize US President Donald Trump.
A spokesman for Unilever said he was “disappointed that the confidentiality of the employee’s career conversations has been made public.”
It said, “I tried repeatedly to get involved with Ben & Jerry’s board and follow the right process.”
The US District Court filing for the Southern District of New York said Unilever “has repeatedly threatened Ben & Jerry staff if they did not follow Unilever’s efforts to silence its social mission.”
Ben & Jerry has long been known for his public attitude on social issues since it was founded by Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield in 1978.
They often support campaigns on issues such as LGBTQ+ rights and climate change.
The ice cream maker was purchased by Unilever in 2000 through a merger agreement that created an independent board responsible for protecting the value and mission of the ice cream brand.
However, Unilever and Ben & Jerry’s were in Loggerheads for a while. Their relationship became sour in 2021 when Ben & Jerry announced they had stopped selling in the West Bank.
The conflict escalated over the last year as Ben & Jerry advocated a ceasefire in Gaza.
In November, the ice cream company filed a lawsuit that they tried to stop Unilever from expressing their support for Palestinian refugees.
In another court filing last month, Ben & Jerry said they had tried to ban Unilever from publicly criticizing Donald Trump.
Mr. Stever has been with Ben & Jerry’s since joining the company as a tour guide in 1988. He was appointed CEO in 2023.
Ben and Jerry’s court filing said the decision to expel Stever without consultation, as required in the merger agreement between the two companies.
“Unilever…substantiated to force an independent committee to rubber stamp on the decision,” he added.
A Unilever spokesperson said, “In line with the terms of the acquisition agreement, decisions regarding the appointment, compensation and removal of Ben & Jerry’s CEO will be made by Unilever after good faith consultation and discussion with the Independent Committee of B&J.”
“We hope that the B&J Independent Committee will be involved in accordance with the original agreed process,” they added.
Additional Reports by Lily Jamali
