Ben & Jerry’s forced to end boycott of Israel

Unilever overrules ice cream maker with sale of local operations after controversy over activism

BEN & Jerry’s has been forced to end a boycott of occupied Palestinian territories after the ice cream brand’s owner Unilever said that “antisemitism has no place in society”.

Unilever has struck a deal to sell the brand’s Israeli operations to a local manufacturer following a decision by Alan Jope, the company’s chief executive, who has previously been accused of focusing on social purpose while allowing performance to slide.

Ben & Jerry’s – which is owned by Unilever but has an independent board that makes ethical decisions on the brand’s behalf – claimed last summer that selling into occupied Palestinian territory was “inconsistent with our values” and said that it would not be renewing its licence agreement with its franchise in Israel.

But Unilever said yesterday that it had brought the boycott to an end, adding that it “rejects completely and repudiates unequivocally any form of discrimination or intolerance”.

The deal was welcomed by Yair Lapid, the Israeli foreign minister, who said: “Antisemitism will not defeat us, not even when it comes to ice cream.”

The company – which also makes Marmite and Hellmann’s mayonnaise – added that it still has primary responsibility for financial and operational decisions at the ice cream brand under the terms of a takeover deal in 2000, and so had the right to strike a deal to sell interests in Israel. It said it had consulted with the Israeli government on the issue.

Avi Zinger, the owner of American Quality Products, is buying the Ben & Jerry’s brand in the country. He has been making and selling the ice cream under licence for the past 34 years.

The sale follows an internal dispute between Unilever management and Ben & Jerry’s.

The US dessert maker has had an independent board since its takeover in 2000, unlike Unilever’s other brands such as Magnum and Hellmann’s. That allowed Ben & Jerry’s to control decision making for the business – a division that has repeatedly taken political stances, increasingly on foreign policy.

On Ben & Jerry’s website, it says the board is “empowered to protect and defend Ben & Jerry’s brand equity and integrity. And our product quality!”

Jewish human rights group the Simon Wiesenthal Centre said Unilever chief executive Alan Jope had personally informed the group of the decision to stop the boycott yesterday morning.

The Simon Wiesenthal Centre ’s chairman of the board of governors is Nelson Peltz, the billionaire activist investor who recently built a stake in Unilever and who joined its board in late May.

Mr Jope has previously publicly clashed with Ben & Jerry’s over its activism, earlier this year warning the ice cream brand to “stay out of debates” it did not understand. That comment came after it criticised Joe Biden’s response to the Ukraine war.

In February, Ben & Jerry’s wrote on Twitter: “We call on President Biden to de-escalate tensions and work for peace rather than prepare for war.

“Sending thousands more US troops to Europe in response to Russia’s threats against Ukraine only fans the flame of war.”

The wider company’s ethical positions have led to repeated clashes with shareholders.

Terry Smith, a veteran stock picker, took issue with Mr Jope’s insistence that every one of his brands must have a social purpose, saying earlier this year that “a company which feels it has to define the purpose of Hellmann’s mayonnaise has, in our view, clearly lost the plot”.

Mr Zinger had been suing Unilever in Israel over the move to stop selling Ben & Jerry’s in the region. Yesterday, he said that this lawsuit had now been settled.

Unilever said it had “used the opportunity of the past year to listen to perspectives on this complex and sensitive matter and believes this is the best outcome for Ben & Jerry’s in Israel”.