Ben & Jerry's says its CEO was fired for the company's political posts

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: CNN Business

Published 8:06 AM EDT, Wed March 19, 2025


New York CNN — Ben & Jerry’s is accusing its parent company Unilever of breaching its merger agreement by ousting the ice cream company’s CEO for the brand’s repeated public comments on progressive issues, removing its chief executive without the board’s approval. It’s the latest escalation of an increasingly ugly dispute between the brand and its conglomerate owner that began in 2021.

In an amended complaint filed Tuesday in New York, lawyers for the ice cream brand said that rules stemming from its 2000 merger “protects Ben & Jerry’s interests by precluding the unilateral removal of its CEO,” but Unilever did just that — “removing and replacing” CEO David Stever by not following the proper protocols and said it was because of the brand’s continued comments on progressive issues.

The lawsuit said that Unilever’s motive for the removal of Stever was due to his “commitment to Ben & Jerry’s Social Mission and Essential Brand Integrity … rather than any genuine concerns regarding his performance history.” Unilever (UL) didn’t immediately respond to CNN’s request for comment. The UK company announced in March 2024 it was looking to sell Ben & Jerry’s and its other ice cream brands but it has not yet completed a deal.

Tuesday’s complaint is the latest in a string of them against Unilever for attempting to silence the ice cream brand on social media. In January, the company alleged that Unilever “unilaterally barred” from a post referencing abortion, climate change and universal healthcare because it mentioned President Donald Trump.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2025/03/19/food/ben-and-jerrys-ceo-lawsuit/index.html

[Shellback Squid]

1. This is odd that they're not a repub supporting company

https://www.goodsuniteus.com/brands/#/brand/unilever

[BumRushDaShow]

2. That might only be employees - here is the OpenSecrets version

https://www.opensecrets.org/orgs/unilever/summary?id=D000030608

[marble falls]

4. But they do have a company standard regarding muddying up the market to prevent offputting conservative/liberal ...

... purchasers. I get it. But there are consumers like me that really do want to know where suppliers stand politically.

Nestles, for example does all sorts of things to keep you from knowing what they stand for. Beside monetizing everything from water up to make there share.

[OldBaldy1701E]

5. Nope. Just a greedy, self serving one.

More profit from not being partisan (either real or perceived). Simple business.

[mucifer]

3. Not surprised. This is our future if we can't change things.

[Fla Dem]

6. Here's a Unilever List of Products. I'll stop using at least 4-6 of the products shown.

Love Bryers and Dove Soap and use several other products regularly. I'm sure my efforts won't make an impact but doing it anyway.

https://www.unilever.com/brands/all-brands/

[bsiebs]

7. They seem to have a lot of crappy brands too...

[tornado34jh]

8. Many of those brands I have never even heard of

Wall's, Rexona, Cornetto, I have never heard of these. Those don't look like ones I have seen in stores.

[bsiebs]

9. Most likely brands that sell outside the us

[tornado34jh]

11. Maybe

I know some of them, but not all of them. Then again, I don't really use those products.