Ben & Jerry's has announced that its parent company Unilever has made the decision to remove the chief executive officer, Dave Stever, sparking a disagreement over the subsidiary's autonomy on social issues. The ice cream maker disclosed in a legal filing on Tuesday in a federal court in Manhattan that Unilever had informed them on March 3 of the decision to dismiss and replace Stever, citing disputes over Ben & Jerry's adherence to the parent company's attempts to stifle its social mission. Stever, who joined Ben & Jerry's as a tour guide in 1988, was appointed CEO in May 2023.
The latest claims were revealed in Ben & Jerry's legal action to prevent Unilever's alleged actions to dismantle its independent board and curb its social activism. These allegations were part of a proposed revised complaint that Ben & Jerry's required court authorization to submit. Unilever was given a deadline until Wednesday to challenge Ben & Jerry's earlier complaint.
Ben & Jerry's, founded in 1978 by Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, has been known for its socially conscious objectives. The company was acquired by Unilever in 2000, and tensions between the two companies arose in 2021 when Ben & Jerry's stopped sales in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, a business that was later divested.
In recent times, several companies have retreated from progressive social policies criticized by individuals like Donald Trump and other conservatives, amid efforts by the U.S. president to influence both the federal government and sections of corporate America. Last month, Ben & Jerry's accused Unilever of prohibiting it from publicly denouncing Trump without consultation due to the "new dynamic" in place.
Unilever is planning to separate Ben & Jerry's, Breyers, Magnum, and other ice cream brands later this year as part of a streamlining process to focus on select brands among its extensive portfolio, which includes names like Dove, Hellmann's, Knorr, Surf, and Vaseline.
The lawsuit is titled Ben & Jerry's Homemade Inc v Unilever et al, filed in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, under case number 24-08641.