Ben & Jerry’s accuses Unilever of muzzling it because of Trump

NEW YORK - Ben & Jerry’s on Jan 24 ratcheted up its censorship lawsuit against Unilever, accusing its parent company of suppressing a social policy statement the US ice cream maker wanted to release because it mentioned President Donald Trump.

The allegation came in an amended complaint filed in Manhattan federal court, where

Ben & Jerry’s in November accused Unilever

of silencing its attempts to express support for Palestinian refugees and end military aid to Israel, and threatening to dismantle its independent board.

Ben & Jerry’s wants a court order freeing the board to continue oversight of its social mission, and requiring Unilever to honor its commitment to make US$25 million (S$34 million) of payments to groups chosen by the ice cream company.

Unilever and Ben & Jerry’s did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Both companies have been publicly at odds since 2021 when Ben & Jerry’s decided to stop selling Cherry Garcia, Chubby Hubby and other ice cream flavors in the Israeli-occupied West Bank because it was inconsistent with the company’s values.

That led some investors to divest Unilever shares, and Ben & Jerry’s to sue its parent for selling its Israeli business to a local licensee.

A settlement in 2022 required Unilever to respect Ben & Jerry’s independent board and social mission, as well as make the US$25 million of payments.

London-based Unilever since then announced plans to spin out its ice cream business, including Ben & Jerry’s, to simplify its product portfolio and cut costs. The lawsuit, however, could complicate those plans.

“It doesn’t help it, because anytime you have a cloud over it, it makes it harder to either sell it or spin it out. It affects folks’ interpretation of its value,” said retired University of Delaware law professor Charles Elson who is also a corporate governance expert.

Donald Trump, Nelson Peltz and Elon Musk

In the amended complaint, Ben & Jerry’s said its management and board, with input from Unilever’s global head of litigation, worked after Mr Trump’s election on a post to be released on Inauguration Day, discussing hot-button issues such as abortion, climate change, minimum wages and universal healthcare.

But on Jan 18, two days before Mr Trump’s inauguration, Unilever ice cream chief Peter ter Kulve “unilaterally barred Ben & Jerry’s from issuing the post because it specifically mentioned ‘Donald Trump’”, the complaint said.

Ben & Jerry’s said Mr ter Kulve appeared to base his decision on intuition, while ignoring the company’s history of challenging the Trump administration.

It also said Mr ter Kulve soon held a town hall meeting where he touted how Unilever board member and activist investor Nelson Peltz, a Trump supporter, had introduced the president to Mr Elon Musk, the Tesla founder and close Trump adviser.

The complaint said that according to Mr ter Kulve, “despite four decades of progressive social activism – and years of challenging the Trump administration’s policies specifically – criticising Trump was now too taboo for the brand synonymous with Peace, Love and Ice Cream”.

Many companies in retail, banking and other sectors have curtailed support in January for programs whose perceived social impact has drawn opposition from Mr Trump and his supporters.

Resistance to payments

Ben & Jerry’s was founded by Mr Ben Cohen and Mr Jerry Greenfield in a renovated gas station in 1978, and kept its socially-conscious mission after Unilever bought it in 2000.

According to the amended complaint, Ben & Jerry’s planned to direct US$5 million from Unilever to human rights groups, and US$20 million over 10 years to support Palestinian almond farmers and a fair trade almond supplier it had long used.

It said Unilever opposed the US$5 million of payments because it believed they would support “Palestinian human rights”, and has not made the second US$2.5 million installment.

Ben & Jerry’s also said Mr ter Kulve resisted the US$20 million payment because he disliked the 2022 settlement and had not heard of the almond supplier.

Unilever plans to spin out its ice cream business in 2025 to simplify its product portfolio and cut costs.

Its dozens of other products include Dove soap, Hellmann’s mayonnaise, Knorr bouillon cubes, Surf detergent and Vaseline petroleum jelly. REUTERS