Seeking independence from corporate owners, Ben & Jerry’s Co-founder Jerry Greenfield has announced he is resigning from the company that made him famous.
On September 9th, Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream founders Jerry Greenfield and Ben Cohen wrote a joint letter to Unilever and its offshoot ice cream division Magnum Ice Cream. The duo stated, “We are deeply concerned that the commitments made to us, our employees, and our customers are being eroded.”
For several years, Ben & Jerry’s has had issues with Unilever, which acquired the Burlington-founded creamery in 2000. And tensions have only ratcheted up as the company is in the process of placing Ben & Jerry’s in the Magnum portfolio.
In a video posted last week by The Common Voice, Cohen stands in London in front of Magnum, holding a sign saying, “Yo Magnum Free Ben & Jerry’s”.
“Ben & Jerry’s has been trying to speak out against the genocide in Gaza. They wouldn’t let us do that. We’ve been trying to speak out for racial justice. They silenced us on that. So, they’re ripping the heart out of Ben & Jerry’s.” Cohen added, “And all we’re asking is for them to sell the company to a group of people who support the values of Ben & Jerry’s.”
A week later, Cohen posted a message from company co-founder Jerry Greenfield announcing his resignation. In Greenfield’s letter, he says he is quitting after 47 years because “Standing up for the values of justice, equity, and our shared humanity has never been more important, and yet Ben & Jerry’s has been silenced, sidelined for fear of upsetting those in power.”
Director of Operations at the Peace and Justice Center in Burlington Kasan Hudman is not surprised that Greenfield resigned.
“Given how much it matters to Jerry that he can speak out and advocate for the causes that he’s passionate about. Jerry is a long-time supporter of the Peace and Justice Center. That’s how I know him. We’ve interacted a few times,” Hudman said. “I know that advocating for social justice issues is something that he is very passionate about and something that he cares a lot about in his professional life. So if Unilever is in any way getting in the way of that, he cares more about that than staying with Ben & Jerry’s.”
Cohen and Greenfield have asked the Magnum Ice Cream Board of Directors to allow Ben & Jerry’s to operate as an independently owned company.
Hudman wonders if Greenfield’s resignation will bolster that effort.
“Both Ben and Jerry, but now Ben in particular, are leading the campaign to try and remove Ben & Jerry’s from the Unilever umbrella, from the Magnum. And I think that they’re both trying to sort of see if they can get Ben & Jerry’s to return to being independently operated so that they can speak out. So I imagine that this is probably going to bolster that campaign because everyone’s going to know Hey Jerry stepped down from Ben & Jerry’s. Why? And then they might learn about it and start supporting the campaign to get Ben & Jerry’s to be its own thing,” Hudman said.
During his weekly briefing Wednesday, Vermont Governor Phil Scott was asked about his reaction to Greenfield’s resignation from one of the state’s most prominent companies.
“I didn’t know he was working to be honest with you. I thought he sold out to corporate America a long time ago. But I honestly didn’t know he was working for them.”
In an email to WAMC, Magnum Ice Cream thanked Greenfield for his service but disagrees with his framing, noting that the company has “sought to engage both co-founders in a constructive conversation on how to strengthen Ben & Jerry’s powerful values-based position in the world.” The company adds that it “remain(s) committed to Ben & Jerry’s unique three-part mission – product, economic and social – and remain focused on carrying forward the legacy of peace, love, and ice cream of this iconic, much-loved brand.”
