Unilever has sold its Ben & Jerry’s business to Israel in an attempt to get out of a dispute over ice cream sales in West Bank settlements.
The independent board of Ben & Jerry announced last summer that the brand would stop selling its products in the occupied Palestinian territories, saying doing so was “incompatible with our values”.
The decision was one of the most notable rebukes by a well-known brand of Israeli settlements, which are considered illegal under international law.
He faced strong criticism from Israel. Foreign Minister Yair Lapid called it “a shameful capitulation to anti-Semitism” and said he would address the issue with the more than 30 states that have legislation against the BDS movement, which advocates the boycott. divestment and sanctions against Israeli institutions and companies. .
The dispute prompted Unilever to launch a review of the Israeli business, which led to the announcement Wednesday of its sale to Avi Zinger, the owner of the current Ben & Jerry license holder for the region, American Quality Products (AQP).
Under the terms of the agreement, ice cream will continue to be sold with the same flavors and artwork similar throughout Israel, but using only the Hebrew and Arabic version of the brands, not the English brand, Ben & Jerry’s. A Unilever spokesman said the company would not receive any revenue from licenses to sell the products.
Ben and Jerry’s board had planned not to renew the license with AQP when it expired later this year.
Unilever said it had “taken the opportunity last year to hear prospects on this complex and sensitive issue and believes this is the best outcome for Ben & Jerry’s in Israel. The review included extensive consultation over several months, including with the Israeli government.
“Unilever completely rejects and unequivocally rejects any form of discrimination or intolerance. Anti-Semitism has no place in any society. We have never expressed any support for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement and we have no intention of changing that position. “
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The West Bank and East Jerusalem were captured by Israel in the six-day war of 1967. Now 700,000 Israeli settlers live in the two territories, approximately 500,000 in the occupied West Bank and 200,000 in East Jerusalem.
Israel treats the two areas separately, considering East Jerusalem occupied as part of its capital and the West Bank as a disputed territory, the fate of which should be resolved in negotiations.
However, the international community considers both areas as occupied territory. Palestinians seek the West Bank as part of a future independent state, with East Jerusalem as its capital.
He has approached Ben & Jerry’s for comment.