Thursday, September 18, 2025

Jerry Greenfield has resigned in protest

Jerry Greenfield, the co-founder of the Ben & Jerry's ice cream brand, has officially quit the business.

[...]

"It's with a broken heart that I've decided I can no longer, in good conscience, and after 47 years, remain an employee of Ben & Jerry's. I am resigning from the company Ben and I started back in 1978. This is one of the hardest and most painful decisions I've ever made," the statement from Greenfield began. "This isn't because I've lost my love for the people at Ben & Jerry's. Quite the opposite."

Greenfield went on to explain that what made their business "more than just an ice cream company, was the independence to pursue our values, which was guaranteed when Unilever bought the company."

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Under [Unilever's] ownership, Greenfield said Ben & Jerry's maintained their independence "in no small part because of the unique merger agreement Ben and I negotiated with Unilever, one that enshrined our social mission and values in the company's governance structure in perpetuity. It's profoundly disappointing to come to the conclusion that that independence, the very basis of our sale to Unilever, is gone."

"Ben & Jerry's has been silenced, sidelined for fear of upsetting those in power. It's easy to stand up and speak out when there's nothing at risk. The real test of values is when times are challenging and you have something to lose," Greenfield said.

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Citing the current Trump administration, which he accused of "attacking civil rights, voting rights, the rights of immigrants, women, and the LGBTQ community," Greenfield emphasized that "standing up for the values of justice, equity, and our shared humanity has never been more important."

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In March, Ben & Jerry's filed a lawsuit against Unilever, accusing the parent company of improperly removing the ice cream brand's CEO David Stever in an alleged long-running campaign of censorship over the brand's support of political causes. The lawsuit is ongoing.

  ABC
Kudos to Jerry Greenfield.

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