Frozen out: NJ dumps shares of B&J’s parent

New Jersey said it will divest itself of a $182 million investment in Ben & Jerry’s parent company Unilever, claiming the ice cream maker’s decision to pull out of Israel’s occupied territories violates a state law against boycotting Israel.

New Jersey is yanking its investments out of Unilever over Ben & Jerry’s decision this summer to pull out of the occupied territories in Israel.

The state’s treasury department, which has $182 million invested in Unilever stock, bonds and other securities, fired off a letter to Unilever’s chief executive, Alan Jope, informing him of a 2016 law that prevents New Jersey from investing its pension funds in businesses that engage in boycotts of Israel, according to a copy of the letter.

The Ben & Jerry’s move was determined to have run afoul of that law.

The divestment will be finalized within 90 days unless Unilever appeals the decision, according to the letter by the acting director of the treasury, Shoaib Khan.

Unilever, which owns the popular ice cream company that announced plans to stop selling its products in the occupied territories, has been taking heat from a number of government officials — including Israel’s prime minister, Naftali Bennett — over the controversial decision.

In an August letter to New Jersey, Jope said, “This is a complex matter because since we acquired Ben & Jerry’s in 2000, as part of the acquisition agreement, we have always recognized the right of the brand and its independent Board to take decisions in accordance with its social mission. On this decision, it was no different.”

He said Unilever rejected anti-Semitism and had never expressed support for any so-called BDS movement, which stands for boycott, divest and sanctions against Israel.

The company didn’t respond to a request for a comment from The Post, except to send the August letter from Jope.

Last week, Arizona announced that it would divest itself of a $143 million investment in Unilever as a result of a law that states “public state entities may not invest moneys with an entity that boycotts Israel.”

US Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) called on the Department of Commerce to launch an investigation into Ben & Jerry’s, arguing that the boycott of the West Bank may violate the Export Administration Act.

Other states, including New York, have warned Unilever that they are considering pulling their pension funds.