Popular ice cream brand Ben & Jerry’s will not be available in Judea and Samaria. In a statement issued this evening, the company said, “We believe it goes against our values to sell Ben & Jerry’s ice cream in the occupied Palestinian territory (OPT). We also hear and acknowledge the concerns we share with our fans and trusted partners.” The statement continues: “We have a long-standing partnership with Licensee, who manufactures Ben & Jerry’s ice cream in Israel and distributes it in the region. We are working to change this, and so we have informed Licensee that we will not renew the license agreement when it expires at the end of next year.” The company added, however, that “although Ben & Jerry’s will no longer be sold in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, we will remain in Israel through a different arrangement. We will share an update on this as soon as we are ready.” The decision comes after a vigorous anti-Israel campaign on social media that has continued since May and the Israeli Guards’ graffiti operation in the Gaza Strip following the firing of rockets into Israel by Hamas. The company, like others, was heavily criticized on social networks by BDS activists (boycott, divest, punish). The company’s official English pages on social media have been inactive since mid-May, at the time of the operation, after surfers were inundated with comments on Ben and Jerry’s business conduct in Judea, Samaria and East Jerusalem. Part of the background is Ben & Jerry’s active role in social issues stemming from the politics of its founders, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, Jews with a hippie past. Among other things, Cohen and Greenfield decided to donate 7.5% of their income to social causes and community projects. In 2000, they sold the company to Unilever. Under the sale agreement, the company has an independent board of directors focused on brand well-being and product quality, maintaining and expanding Ben & Jerry’s social mission. At the same time, an exclusive license was granted to Ben & Jerry’s Israel, which operates as a private company with the rights to produce, market, sell and distribute Ben & Jerry’s ice cream in the country. The Israeli company was the first to build a Ben & Jerry’s ice cream factory outside the United States, and it also sells its products to Europe. The relative independence of the Vermont company’s American board of directors led to continued social activism. She organized the dumping of 400 kilograms of ice cream on Capitol Hill Park in protest of renewed oil drilling in Alaska. Amid the 2011 Occupy Wall Street protest, the Ben & Jerry’s Board of Directors published a statement in support of the protesters, and in protesting the killing of George Floyd, the company’s website was dedicated to the protest. Related Articles Norway’s KLP Fund is moving away from 16 cos with West Bank ties the current step is far-reaching, as the company has not yet been involved in passive activity. Jewish organizations in the US have already protested against the company, and there are calls for a counter-boycott of the ice cream company and parent company Unilever. A source close to the company said, “This has been a story that has been going on for months, and so far they have been able to stop it, but Operation Guardian of the Walls has re-launched it again. BDS tried to put pressure on several manufacturers, and unfortunately Ben & Jerry gave up. Avi Zinger founded , the owner of the company in Israel, the local factory thirty years ago with his own money, when he returned to Israel from the United States with a license to produce and distribute Ben & Jerry’s ice cream.. The factory is located in Tovia well, and there is no chance of it going out of business. “Avi will not give up so quickly. And obviously there’s going to be a lengthy legal contract process here over the next year and a half, and he’ll continue to produce ice cream and he’ll also continue to sell in the regions, and it’s clear to me it’s going to end in a blast. It’s also clear to me that no matter what happens he will continue to produce ice cream. He has all the knowledge and all the machines. It might eventually be under a different brand. Ben & Jerry’s Homemade Holdings Inc. said in a statement from Ben & Jerry’s Israel, “Ben & Jerry’s Homemade Holdings Inc. I decided not to renew the agreement with us within eighteen months due to our refusal to stop selling throughout Israel. We call on the government of Israel and consumers not to allow boycotts of Israel. This is an unprecedented act on the part of Unilever, owner of Ben & Jerry’s Inc. Ice cream is not part of politics. We call on the Israelis to continue buying the local product, which provides a livelihood for hundreds of workers in the south. Unilever Israel distanced itself from this move. We are aware of Ben & Jerry’s decision and would like to clarify the following: Unilever Israel has nothing to do with the Ben & Jerry brand in Israel, which is operated by the franchisor and competes with Unilever in the local ice cream market. Ben & Jerry’s decision was made by its independent board of directors. Unilever Israel is proud of its history in Israel and is fully committed to its presence in the country. The company employs about 2,000 people at its headquarters, in its logistics network, and in our factories in Arad, Acre, Tzifat and Haifa, and in the last decade alone, Unilver has invested more than one billion shekels in its activity in Israel. The company will continue to invest in its people, its brands and its business in Israel.” Interior Minister Ayelet Shaked tweeted in response to Ben & Jerry’s ad, “Your ice cream does not match our taste.” We will live without you. Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on July 19, 2021 © Copyright Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2021
Ben and Jerry’s: We will end sales in the occupied Palestinian territories
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