The chair of Ben & Jerry’s independent board, Anuradha Mittal, declared she has no intention of resigning despite mounting pressure from Unilever, which is preparing to spin off its Magnum ice cream division on Monday, Reuters reported. The new company will include the Vermont-based brand.
Magnum, a longtime division of the consumer goods giant, announced last month that Mittal “no longer meets the criteria” to serve following internal investigations, though it offered no further details. The division will list publicly on Euronext, inheriting a bitter corporate feud between Unilever and Ben & Jerry’s over the brand’s political stance on Israel.
An audit of the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation, a US non-profit where Mittal has served as trustee since 2012, cited deficiencies in financial controls and governance. Mittal, chair of the independent board since 2018, rejected the findings outright.
“The so-called audit of the foundation was a manufactured inquiry - engineered to attempt to discredit me,” she said, as quoted by Reuters. “It is important to understand that this is not simply an attack on me as chair. It is Unilever’s attempt to undermine the authority of the Board itself.”
Mittal insisted she is fulfilling her responsibilities under the 2000 merger agreement with Unilever, safeguarding both the brand’s social mission and product quality.
Magnum countered: “This is not about individuals, it is about the consistent application of good governance principles and practices across The Magnum Ice Cream Company.” The company said the audit was conducted in preparation for its demerger.
Unilever did not respond to requests for comment.
Unilever and Ben & Jerry’s have been at odds since 2021, when the Vermont-based brand announced it would halt sales in Judea and Samaria.
At the time, Mittal denied that the company’s decision to stop selling its ice cream in Judea and Samaria was antisemitic, writing, “I am proud of Ben & Jerry’s for taking a stance to end sale of its ice cream in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.”
Later that year, Mittal was voted "Antisemite of the Year" by watchdog StopAntisemitism, which cited Mittal being the driving force behind the decision by Ben & Jerry's to stop selling its products in Judea and Samaria.
In January of this year, Ben & Jerry's initiated legal action against Unilever, alleging attempts to silence its outspoken stance on Gaza and its past criticisms of President Donald Trump.
In May, the board of Ben & Jerry's escalated its bitter feud with Unilever by publicly labeling the ongoing conflict in Gaza as "genocide".