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Is it true the original founders of Ben and Jerry want to buy the brand back?
By Paul Bean
Ben & Jerry’s says its parent company, Unilever, forced out the ice cream company’s CEO, David Stever, due to their outspoken anti-Trump political stance.
According to a court filing from Tuesday, Unilever, headquartered in London, is said to have fired Stever in a bid to “mute the social mission” of Ben & Jerry’s—a mission that has also recently encompassed vocal opposition to Israel’s actions in the Gaza war.
The complaint states that Unilever notified the Independent Board of Stever’s replacement as CEO on March 3. Stever, who began his career with the brand as a tour guide at its Waterbury factory in 1988, had held the top position since May 2023.
As part of the $326 million dollar acquisition by Unilever, the deal allowed Ben and Jerry’s to still control the company’s messaging and position on global and national political matters. However, recently the Vermont based ice cream giant claimed that Unilever’s grip on its progressive social media posts had reached “new heights of suppression.”
Accord to the New York Post, reports emerged from court filings that Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, founders of Ben & Jerry’s, are considering buying back the brand. The ice cream company generated approximately $8.72 billion in revenue in 2024 and it is most likely that Cohen and Greenfield would need to secure investors to fund a potential buyout. The ice cream company generated approximately $8.72 billion in revenue in 2024.
“Earlier this month, Ben & Jerry’s filed a complaint as part of the suit claiming the megacorp was trying to dismantle its independent board and put a halt to all social activism — which includes criticizing President Trump. The filing included the allegation that Unilever prevented the Phish Food mongers from posting on social media about Trump’s inauguration. Unilever CEO Peter ter Kulve defended the company’s action, saying it created a “new dynamic” in an “unprecedented time. The Chubby Hubby slingers came to a head with Unilever back in 2021 when the left-handed scoopers vowed to halt all sales in the West Bank — a decision that was overridden by top brass at the UK-based food giant who proceeded with their sale to a local Israeli licensee. Ben & Jerry’s filed a lawsuit at the time alleging Unilever was infringing upon the independent board of the company, which was guaranteed as part of the original corporate sale.
The posts below were made June 6, 2024 following Donald Trump’s arrest and felony convictions and a link to a map from ACLU on “Felony Disenfranchisement Laws.”
In January, the company claimed Unilever had “unilaterally barred” it from making a post about abortion, climate change and universal healthcare because it mentioned President Trump.
Ben & Jerry’s also said Unilever blocked a post in celebration of Black History Month in February. Most recently, On March 10, Ben & Jerry’s posted to their instagram: “Today is national Abortion Healthcare Provider Appreciation Day! We stand with abortion providers today and everyday. Learn more and take action at the link in our bio.” The link is no longer available.
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Categories: Business
Serves those hypocritical moonbats right, after they sold their souls to Unilever. If they want to be uber-woke, let them buy the brand back. Even Ben and Jerry are going to learn that corporations who were being harassed, intimidated and extorted into wokeness/DEI were not doing it because it improved their bottom line, they were doing it to avoid being treated like Tesla is being treated now. How would Ben and Jerry like it if domestic terrorists directed molotovs on their scoop shops and the customers enjoying their cones?
Ben and Jerry don’t own Ben and Jerry’s any more. That’s Unilever.
Remember, Ben and Jerry started the business in a garage and look at them now. Some people really get lucky in Vermont.
We have to admit, they succeeded in using clever and opportunistic marketing. They sold a rich, sweet, tasty product in a state with high rate of cannabis use, and they used lefty politics to name their flavors and market it as such. There are many fine ice creams on the market but people buy B&Js mainly to be lefty-fashionable. Objective cardiologists and endocrinologists who treat people for diabetes may not agree that it is a fine product, but B&J are allowed to use fanciful, psychedelic imagery to promote it to their target audience. Tobacco companies are prohibited by law to use colorful caricatures and cartoon animals in Vermont to sell their wares. Not sure if it can be said that one is any better for you or more harmful than the other.
The claim doesn’t pass the sniff test – the link provided is from Unilever’s website and appears perfectly woke to me: https://www.unilever.com/our-company/our-position-on/
Me thinks the man protest too much and not performing his actual job duties to the satisfaction of the UK corporate heads? Perhaps the job requires selling more product and increasing profit margains rather than steering liberal sheep on social media platforms. Or perhaps he got caught doing something that would drag the brand and the company into a crisis mode. Discovery should be interesting.
It looks like Unilever is avoiding a Bud Light fiasco. Ben & Jerry’s is not on my shopping list.
I guess these old hippies didn’t learn anything from Bud Light and Dylan Mulvaney ? Stay out of politics !
dismantle white ice cream
If you hold a political position during a election cycle, you might have the right, even though it’s not the healthy for a company. HOWEVER, once the election is over, an you are publicly belittling the current President, and the function of his administration, you become a problem for the unity of a country. You become a disease within a company. Ridding the CEO was right action for Unilever.
I stopped buying their product years ago because they are such nauseating leftists.