A tub of Ben and Jerry’s ice cream, made by Unilever Plc.
Chris Ratcliffe | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Ben & amp; Jerry’s is suing parent company Unilever to stop selling its Israeli business to a local licensee, a move the consumer products giant has said would keep ice cream products available in Israel and its occupied territories.
Ben & amp; Jerry’s said in a lawsuit filed with the New York federal court on Tuesday that Unilever’s decision was made without the approval of its independent board, which has primary responsibility for safeguarding the integrity of its brand name.
A judge on Tuesday denied Ben & amp; Jerry’s application for a temporary restraining order, but ordered Unilever to show reason by July 14 as to why a preliminary injunction shouldn’t be issued.
Representatives for Unilever and Ben & amp; Jerry’s did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The lawsuit marks the latest development in a dispute that began last year when Ben & amp; Jerry’s said it would stop sales in the West Bank territory occupied by Israel since the 1967 Six Day War.
The Israeli government sees the occupied territories as part of its economy and any attempt to boycott business in the areas is considered applicable to the country. Stopping ice cream sales in the occupied territories would have ended sales across Israel.
In his suit, Ben & amp; Jerry’s said its brand is “synonymous with social activism” and that as part of its deal to be acquired by Unilever in 2000, it had reserved the “primary responsibility for safeguarding the integrity” of Ben & amp; The Jerry’s brand through its independent council.
He said Unilever had publicly recognized the brand’s right to make decisions about its corporate mission. But then last week, Ben & amp; Jerry’s said Unilever “abruptly turned the tide”.
Unilever announced last week that it has sold the Israeli branch of its Ben & amp; Jerry’s business with American Quality Products, which licenses ice cream in Israel. American Quality has stated that it will continue to sell Ben & amp; Jerry’s under Hebrew and Arabic names throughout Israel and its occupied territories.
Despite the right of Ben & amp; Jerry’s independent board of directors to make decisions about the brand’s corporate mission, Unilever said in announcing the sale that it has the right to enter into the deal because it has reserved primary responsibility for financial and operational decisions.
After Unilever announced the sale, Ben & amp; Jerry’s said in his lawsuit that his board held a special meeting on Friday and voted to sue the decision.
In an interview with CNBC following Unilever’s move last week, Israeli licensor, Avi Zinger of American Quality Products, said any potential lawsuit would be “between Unilever and Ben and Jerry’s. I already have a deal. “.
– CNBC’s Candice Choi contributed to this report.
