Ben & Jerry's Sues Parent Company Unilever After CEO Fired Over 'Political Activism'

David Stever, the CEO of Ben & Jerry's, has been fired by Unilever over his support for the brand's political activism, the ice cream label has said. In a lawsuit filed in a US federal court, Ben & Jerry's accused its parent company of violating their merger agreement by trying to silence its long-standing social mission.

Unilever acquired Ben & Jerry's in 2000 under a merger deal that established an independent board to uphold the brand's values and mission. The ice cream maker has long been vocal on social issues, including LGBTQ+ rights, climate change, and more recently, Israel's war on Palestine.

The rift between the two companies began in 2021 when Ben & Jerry's announced it would halt sales in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Tensions escalated further last year when the brand pushed for a ceasefire in Gaza.

The legal filing alleged that Unilever "repeatedly threatened Ben & Jerry's personnel, including CEO David Stever, should they fail to comply with Unilever's efforts to silence the social mission."

Unilever defended its decision, saying it followed the terms of the acquisition agreement, which granted it authority over executive appointments after good faith consultation with Ben & Jerry's independent board," as per BBC.

The ice cream company, however, claimed Unilever made the decision unilaterally, attempting to force the board into "rubber stamping" the move.

A Unilever spokesperson said, "We are disappointed that the confidentiality of an employee career conversation has been made public." They said they "repeatedly attempted to engage with the Ben & Jerry's board and follow the correct process."

The latest filing accused Unilever of preventing Ben & Jerry's from honouring Black History Month and also of supporting the release of Mahmoud Khalil, a US legal resident involved in pro-Palestinian demonstrations at Columbia University.

In November 2024, Ben & Jerry's sued Unilever, claiming it was being blocked from expressing support for Palestinian refugees. The company also claimed last month that Unilever banned it from publicly criticising US President Donald Trump, citing a "new dynamic" in corporate-government relations.

Unilever, which owns brands such as Dove, Hellmann's, and Vaseline, plans to spin off its ice cream business - including Ben & Jerry's, Breyers, and Magnum - later this year. The case, 'Ben & Jerry's Homemade Inc v Unilever Plc et al', is pending in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, Reuters reported.