Ben & Jerry’s said that his managing director David Stever was removed by her parent company Unilever in a growing dispute over the political activism of the ice cream company.
The claim was part of a legal case, which was submitted by Ben & Jerry in front of a US court, which states that Unilever had violated a merger agreement by trying to silence his “social mission”.
Unilever did not immediately answer a request for comments from BBC News.
It comes a month after the ice cream companies Unilever has accused that she does not publicly criticize the US President Donald Trump.
“Unilever has repeatedly threatened Ben & Jerry, including CEO David Stever, if they do not comply with Unilever’s efforts to silence social mission,” said the submission of the US district court for the southern district of New York.
Ben & Jerry’s has long been known for the fact that he has been taking a public attitude on social issues since he was founded by Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield.
It has often supported campaigns on topics such as LGBTQ+ rights and climate change.
Unilever bought the ice machine in 2000 by a merger contract that creates an independent board that was commissioned to protect the values and mission of the ice cream.
But Unilever and Ben & Jerry’s have been with loggerheads for a while. Your relationship was determined in 2021 as Ben & Jerry announced that it would stop sales in West Bank.
The dispute escalated last year when Ben & Jerry campaigned for a ceasefire in Gaza.
In November, the ice cream company submitted a lawsuit in which Unilever tried to prevent them from expressing support for Palestinian refugees.
Last month, Ben & Jerry tried to prohibit Donald Trump publicly in a different court report.
Mr. Stever has been a tour guide at Ben & Jerry since entering the company in 1988. He was appointed managing director in 2023.
The submission of Ben and Jerry’s court said the decision to displace Mr. Stever was made without consultation, as required in the merger agreement between the two companies.
“Unilever … tried to force the independent board in rubber stamping of the decision,” added.
