London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Sep 04, 2025

Ben & Jerry's gives UK parent firm the cold shoulder in Israel sale spat

Ben & Jerry's gives UK parent firm the cold shoulder in Israel sale spat

Unilever and Ben & Jerry's are at loggerheads after the FTSE 100 consumer goods giant took unilateral action to end a spat with Israel over a political stance taken by the ice cream brand last year.

Ben & Jerry's has lashed out at its UK parent firm after it sold its ice cream business in Israel in a bid to avert a diplomatic row over the US brand's decision to exit Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories.

Unilever revealed on Wednesday that it had sold off Ben & Jerry's to its Israel licensee for an undisclosed sum.

It followed the US ice cream business's decision, last year, to stop marketing products in the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories on the grounds that sales would be "inconsistent" with its values.

Under the new arrangement, Ben & Jerry's ice cream will be available to all consumers in Israel and the occupied West Bank.

Israel's foreign ministry called the Ben & Jerry's deal "a huge victory".

"We will fight delegitimisation and the BDS campaign in every arena, whether in the public square, in the economic sphere or in the moral realm," Israel's Foreign Minister Yair Lapid said in a statement.

But that view was not shared by the brand which had been accused, by Israel, of being "morally wrong" in its original boycott.


It said via its Twitter account: "We are aware of the Unilever announcement. While our parent company has taken this decision, we do not agree with it."

The statement added: "We continue to believe it is inconsistent with Ben & Jerry's values for our ice cream to be sold in the Occupied Palestinian Territory."

Ben & Jerry's and its independent board maintained the right to decide on its social mission when it was bought by Unilever in 2000.

But Unilever said it "reserved primary responsibility for financial and operational decisions and therefore has the right to enter this arrangement".

The company had faced intense lobbying over the Ben & Jerry's boycott, including in the United States, where pension funds had sold Unilever stock in protest at the brand's decision.

The Palestine Liberation Organisation's Wasel Abu Yussef told the Reuters news agency: "The return of Ben and Jerry's to Israeli settlements, which were built on Palestinian land, exposes it to international legal accountability and its name will be on the United Nations blacklist of companies operating in settlements."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Queen Camilla’s Teenage Courage: Fended Off Attempted Assault on London Train, New Biography Reveals
Scottish Brothers Set Record in Historic Pacific Row
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Court of Appeal Allows Asylum Seekers to Remain at Essex Hotel Amid Local Tax Boycott Threats
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Nvidia Reveals: Two Mystery Customers Account for About 40% of Revenue
Woody Allen: "I Would Be Happy to Direct Trump Again in a Film"
Pickles are the latest craze among Generation Z in the United States.
Deadline Day Delivers Record £125m Isak Move and Donnarumma to City
Nestlé Removes CEO Laurent Freixe Following Undisclosed Relationship with Subordinate
Giuliani Seriously Injured in Accident – Trump to Award Him the Presidential Medal of Freedom
EU is getting aggressive: Four AfD Candidates Die Unexpectedly Ahead of North Rhine-Westphalia Local Elections
Lula and Putin Hold Strategic BRICS Discussions Ahead of Trump–Putin Summit
WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that looks a lot like Telegram.
Investigations Reveal Rise in ‘Sex-for-Rent’ Listings Across Canada Exploiting Vulnerable Tenants
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
×