Including Ben & Jerry’s, Unilever is spinning off ice cream brands

On Tuesday, Unilever declared that it would split off all of its brands of ice cream into a new business, which would include the well-known Vermont ice cream producer Ben & Jerry’s.

According to a statement from Unilever, the newly formed ice cream division would feature Wall’s and Magnum in addition to Ben & Jerry’s. The business stated that a demerger would most likely be used to spin off the division.

After 24 years as a part of Unilever, Sean Greenwood, a spokesman for Ben & Jerry’s, stated in an email that this is “a significant change for us.”

He continued by saying that Ben & Jerry’s is still dedicated to its three-part mission: making the best ice cream, advancing the betterment of society, and operating a profitable for-profit company, regardless of its ownership structure.

In an additional move to “enhance productivity,” Unilever stated on Tuesday that it would be eliminating 7,500 roles, the most of which will be office-based.

A company spokesperson for Ben & Jerry’s stated that VTDigger verified last week that the company was eliminating seven jobs at its corporate offices in South Burlington. If those cuts have anything to do with the recent layoff news, that much is not immediately apparent.

The changes were revealed by the consumer products behemoth a month after its ice cream division’s volume decreased by 6% in its most recent quarterly report. The business attributed the higher rate of inflation to its impact on ice cream production compared to other industries, which raised costs and made customers look for less expensive ice cream options.

Due to its commitment to social justice, Ben & Jerry’s additionally received media attention, occasionally causing conflict with its parent corporation. Unilever was forced to sell its operations in the West Bank and Israel to a different company in 2021 as a result of Ben & Jerry’s concerns to the company’s ice cream sales in the West Bank.