Unilever says Ben & Jerry’s not for sale — – Business News
Unilever on Thursday mentioned the conglomerate has no intention of promoting Ben & Jerry’s — regardless of a bid by the founders of the favored ice cream model to buy back the company.
Starting July 1, Unilever’s ice cream manufacturers might be spun off and renamed the Magnum Ice Cream Company, a nod to the division’s different standard company. The spin-off might be listed within the Netherlands as a separate company.
“The separation and listing of ice cream is the option that we consider maximizes shareholder value, that has not changed,” Unilever CEO Fernando Fernandez mentioned on a media call, in line with Bloomberg.
Unilever mentioned Ben & Jerry’s is not for sale, regardless of makes an attempt from the model’s founders. Getty Images
Ben & Jerry’s did not instantly reply to The Post’s request for remark.
Ben & Jerry’s has been battling its London-based proprietor for years over its freedom to assist liberal causes publicly, like protesting President Trump and the battle in Gaza, and calling for police departments to be defunded.
In 2022, the ice cream model sued Unilever for promoting its Ben & Jerry’s business in Israel to a companion who continued to sell the candy treats with barely totally different branding.
The corporations reached a settlement that very same yr, which required Unilever to respect Ben & Jerry’s unbiased board.
Earlier this week, information broke that Unilever allegedly threatened to tug funding for the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation, a nonprofit supporting organizations that advocate for jail reforms and undocumented youth.
Unilever demanded the inspiration undergo an expedited audit to proceed receiving funding – about $5 million every year, sources advised Reuters.
Unilever allegedly threatened to tug funding for the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation, in line with a report. Getty Images
“We have not made any threat,” Fernandez mentioned, including that audits are a legitimate type of governance and the company desires to know the place its money goes.
“It is our responsibility to ensure that these funds are used properly,” he mentioned. “It has to be allocated to areas or institutions that are absolutely in line with the ones that are part of the acquisition agreement.”
In March, Ben & Jerry’s claimed Unilever fired its chief govt David Stever, who began as a tour information on the model’s Waterbury, Vt., manufacturing facility, over anti-Trump activism.
The model argued the firing violated its 2000 merger settlement with Unilever.
Unilever responded that it has the authority to nominate a new chief govt, and that it will solely make such a choice after talking with the board.
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, childhood mates from Long Island, NY, based the company in 1978. They offered the company to Unilever for $326 million in 2000.
