🔗 Share this article

One of the original creators behind the famous ice cream brand Ben and Jerry's has claimed how parent company the multinational conglomerate prevented the launch for an innovative pro-Palestinian ice cream flavor.

Ben Cohen, who established the company alongside his partner, revealed how he will personally create this new flavor as part of an individual collection highlighting causes the company has been barred from addressing publicly.

Ongoing Conflict Involving Founders versus Corporate Owner

The recent development escalates the ongoing tension among the world-famous ice cream maker with Unilever, the UK-based packaged goods corporation which acquired the ice cream brand since 2000.

Both founders have claimed how the parent company along with their ice cream division Magnum improperly prevented their company from "maintaining its activist principles".

Watermelon Flavor becoming a Symbol of Support

The entrepreneur stated via social media how he is creating an innovative watermelon-based frozen dessert, requesting public suggestions for the product's name plus additional components.

“I'm doing what they couldn't,” Mr. Cohen commented in his kitchen. “I'm making a watermelon-based frozen dessert that calls for lasting ceasefire in Palestine while demanding addressing the harm that occurred in the region.”

This particular fruit has emerged as an emblem of support for Palestinians due to its colors, which closely resemble the colors in Palestine's national banner – the distinctive four-color pattern.

Historical Social Engagement and Recent Changes

In 2021, the ice cream company ceased sales of their merchandise in territories under Israeli control, leading to the parent company selling their Israel business over to an Israeli distributor, thereby permitting continued sales in disputed territories.

The new dessert series will be developed under Mr. Cohen's personal brand, the socially conscious ice cream brand which originally created several years back to support former political contender Bernie Sanders with the flavor "Bernie's Return".

Management Shifts and Upcoming Plans

The founder indicated that he plans to create other ice cream flavors focusing on concerns which the company was prevented from addressing publicly by Unilever.

This development comes after partner Jerry Greenfield stepped down his position at the company recently, following decades with the organization, mentioning worries that the company's autonomy was compromised after corporate moves to curb its social activism.

At that time, Ben Cohen remarked that “My partner has strong compassion and this conflict with our parent company was breaking it."

“My conscience compels me to keep working inside the company to fight for its independence ensuring that it can fulfill its ethical purpose, the values that it was founded on while upholding for decades," he told journalists.

• Corporate owner limitations on social activism
• Independent product development by original creators
• Watermelon flavor as political symbol
• Ongoing disagreements among corporate ownership versus social mission