USA 
United Kingdom
The former chair of Ben and Jerry’s has accused the company that owns the brand of threatening to damage her reputation as part of an escalating dispute over governance and independence.
Anuradha Mittal, who led Ben and Jerry’s independent board for seven years, said the Magnum Ice Cream Company warned it would publish defamatory statements about her if she did not step down. She told the BBC the threat was made during a period of intensifying conflict over the board’s freedom to pursue the brand’s social mission.
Magnum said Mittal was removed after it concluded she no longer met the criteria to serve, following an investigation carried out by external advisers. The company announced changes to board operations, including a nine-year limit on board service.
Governance changes and board exits
Mittal said she received a letter informing her she had been removed from the board. Two additional board members will also be required to leave as part of the governance overhaul, according to Magnum.
The company also said an audit of the Ben and Jerry’s Foundation identified material deficiencies in financial controls, governance and compliance policies, including conflicts of interest.
Speaking on the BBC’s World Business Report, Mittal described rising tension between the board and the owner over independence, social mission and integrity. “For several years now, we have been resisting their overreach, including their efforts to muzzle us from speaking out for human rights, for peace,” she said.
Ben and Jerry’s was owned by Unilever until earlier this month, when the consumer goods group spun off its ice cream division to form Magnum Ice Cream Company. The 2000 sale of Ben and Jerry’s to Unilever included provisions allowing the brand to retain an independent board and control over its social mission, a structure that frequently led to friction.
Long running tensions over activism
Disputes became more public in recent years. In 2021, Ben and Jerry’s stopped selling products in areas occupied by Israel, prompting Unilever to sell the Israeli operation to a local licensee. In October, co-founder Ben Cohen said the brand was prevented from launching a flavor expressing “solidarity with Palestine.”
Mittal said the dispute culminated this autumn. “This October, Unilever-Magnum executives threatened me with defamatory statements in their forthcoming prospectus if I did not resign,” she said. She added that she was offered a senior role at a multi-million dollar Unilever funded nonprofit if she complied, an offer she described as inappropriate.
Magnum, now the world’s largest ice cream maker with brands including Cornetto, Wall’s and Carte D’Or, rejected the allegations. A spokesperson said the steps taken were designed to strengthen corporate governance and “reaffirm the responsibilities of the Board of Ben and Jerry’s.”
“These actions aim to preserve and enhance the brand’s historical social mission and safeguard its essential integrity,” the spokesperson said.
Jerry Greenfield, one of Ben and Jerry’s founders, left the company in September, saying its social mission was being constrained. Cohen has also criticized Magnum, saying it was “not fit” to own the business.
Magnum said it remains committed to Ben and Jerry’s three part mission and progressive, non partisan values, adding that the brand continues to advocate for social justice across its platforms.
