Ben & Jerry’s will amend rejected legal bid to block transfer of Israel license

Judge had thrown out ice cream giant’s original claim its brand image would be irreparably damaged by Unilever’s decision to spin off subsidiary

Ben & Jerry's ice cream on sale at a shop in Jerusalem, on July 19, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/ Flash90)
Ben & Jerry's ice cream on sale at a shop in Jerusalem, on July 19, 2021. (Yonatan Sindel/ Flash90)

Ben & Jerry’s announced Tuesday that it intends to modify its case against parent company Unilever as it seeks to revive a legal bid to prevent Ben & Jerry’s products from being sold in the West Bank.

The US ice cream giant had originally claimed that its brand image would be damaged by Unilever’s decision to sell the license to an Israeli subsidiary, but last month a US federal judge threw out the claim, calling it “too speculative.”

It is not clear what type of legal pivot Ben & Jerry’s is planning. It said it would serve the new documents to the court by September 27, with Unilever required to respond by November 1, Reuters reported.

The ongoing courtroom battle stems from the ice cream maker’s 2021 attempt to boycott Israeli settlements, and has spiraled into a rare legal conflict between a major company and its parent corporation.

Ben & Jerry’s sued Conopco, Unilever’s main US branch, on July 5, after Conopco spun off Ben & Jerry’s Israel, granting it independence as part of a legal settlement. Ben & Jerry’s says the move violated the acquisition deal it had signed with Unilever in 2000.

Ben & Jerry’s attorney Shahmeer Halepota told Bloomberg that the ice cream company’s merger deal with Unilever granted its founders “authority” over decisions when there was a social justice element — even if it was in conflict with business interests.

Trucks are parked at the Ben & Jerry’s ice-cream factory in the Be’er Tuvia Industrial area, July 20, 2021. (AP Photo/Tsafrir Abayov)

In its initial claim, the Vermont-based company had argued that its Israeli branch, owned by Avi Zinger, could take new flavors and change their branding to pro-settlement slogans, undermining the Ben & Jerry’s social image.

For example, Ben & Jerry’s could make a flavor in support of Palestinians, and the Israel branch could then take the same flavor and brand it as pro-settlement, the lawyers argued. Ben & Jerry’s considers the branding surrounding its social mission and activism as key to its business success.

Ben & Jerry’s also said conflicting labeling could confuse consumers.

To meet the threshold for a preliminary injunction, the ice cream company needed to show it would suffer “actual or imminent” irreparable harm, absent an injunction.

The judge did not accept the claims, saying, “Such purported harm is too speculative… [the] plaintiff has failed to demonstrate irreparable harm.”

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.

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