The founders of Ben & Jerry’s are urging parent company Unilever to allow the ice cream brand to operate as an “independently owned company.”
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, who established Ben & Jerry’s in Vermont in 1978 before Unilever’s acquisition in 2000, have addressed a letter to Unilever ahead of the planned separation of ice cream slated for mid-November.
The planned spin-off was first announced early in 2024, and the entity proclaimed as The Magnum Ice Cream Company (TMICC) is set to be listed on exchanges in London, Amsterdam, and New York following the separation in November.
In addition to Ben & Jerry’s, the new setup encompasses other global ice cream brands including Solero, Cornetto, Twister, and Carte D’Or.
Cohen and Greenfield expressed their feeling of being “compelled to speak out,” asserting that Unilever has not honored the agreements from the 2000 takeover, which purportedly “guaranteed the company’s [Ben & Jerry’s] autonomy…with the freedom to pursue its social mission.”
In the letter, they stated: “We are deeply concerned that the commitments made to us, our employees, and our customers are being eroded.”
Furthermore, they added, “For several years now, the voice of Ben & Jerry’s has been silenced by Unilever, especially when the brand has sought to advocate for social justice and unjust wars. That is not the Ben & Jerry’s that we founded or the one we envisioned when we agreed to join Unilever 25 years ago.”
Cohen and Greenfield have a history of advocating with Unilever under their social mission agenda since the acquisition in 2000.
Earlier this year, Ben & Jerry’s filed a case in a New York court accusing the FMCG giant of ousting its then-CEO, Dave Stever, which was considered as Unilever’s attempt to suppress their mission agenda.
Additionally, in another court filing in 2024, Ben & Jerry’s stated that Unilever tried to ban it from publicly criticizing President Donald Trump. The ice cream maker also filed a lawsuit the same year, claiming that Unilever attempted to restrict its support for Palestinian refugees.
Unilever had sold its ice cream operation in the Israeli-occupied West Bank in 2022, seeking to mitigate a diplomatic row that stemmed from Ben & Jerry’s halting sales in the territory the previous year. In response, Israel had threatened to boycott the company’s products.
In their recent statement, the founders remarked: “We no longer believe that Ben & Jerry’s belongs under the umbrella of a corporate entity that fails to support its founding mission…Magnum may be a new company, but it retains the legacy, leadership, and investment of Unilever’s ice cream business and the history of its actions against Ben & Jerry’s.”
They urged Unilever to “allow Ben & Jerry’s to operate once again as an independently owned company, supported by socially aligned investors and free to honor its mission without compromise.”
Responding to the letter on September 10, a spokesperson for TMICC stated: “Ben & Jerry’s is a proud part of The Magnum Ice Cream Company and is not for sale. We remain committed to Ben & Jerry’s unique three-part mission – product, economic, and social – and look forward to building on its success as an iconic, much-loved business.”
Unilever held a capital markets day on September 9 to outline its TMICC agenda following the November separation. The new company will be led by CEO Peter ter Kulve and CFO Abhijit Bhattacharya.
The consumer goods giant confirmed it will retain a 20% interest in the business, gradually reducing this stake “over time.” Unilever anticipates incurring €800 million ($936.4 million) in separation costs, primarily from technology, with 80% of these costs expected to be realized by the end of 2026, according to their presentation.
Restructuring expenses will constitute about 0.8% of group revenues from 2025 to 2028.
TMICC, catering to both retail and foodservice channels, is set to command a 21% global market share, surpassing Froneri’s 11%. This was characterized as the emergence of “two global pure-play ice cream players.”
Froneri, a joint venture between Nestlé and PAI Partners, is reportedly considering a sale or spin-off of its stake.
The separated Unilever entity is aiming for annual organic growth of 3-5% over the “medium term” beginning in 2026.
Ice cream generated €7.9 billion in sales revenue for Unilever in 2024, alongside an adjusted EBITDA of €1.3 billion.
