Why Ben & Jerry's Co-Founder Jerry Greenfield Resigned After 47 Years

The decision comes as Greenfield, who co-founded the business with Ben Cohen back in 1978, says h e could no longer "in good conscience" work with their parent company, Unilever.

"I'm resigning from the company Ben and I started back in 1978," Jerry wrote in a statement shared by his longtime business partner on Wednesday. "This is one of the hardest and most painful decisions I've ever made."

Greenfield said his choice wasn't about the people inside the company, noting, "The folks who show up every day in our factories, scoop shops and offices are some of the most passionate, caring, and values-driven people you'll ever meet. They are the soul of Ben & Jerry's."

Instead, the ice cream pioneer pointed the finger at Unilever, who purchased the brand in 2000, claiming the guarantees he and Cohen negotiated with the sale were no longer being honored.

"For more than 20 years under their ownership, Ben & Jerry's stood up and spoke out in support of peace, justice and human rights, not as abstract concepts, but in relation to real events happening in our world," he explained. "It's profoundly disappointing to come to the conclusion that that independence, the very basis of our sale to Unilever, is gone."

Greenfield added that if the company couldn't live up to its founding values, he could no longer stay.

"From the very beginning, Ben and I believed that our values and the pursuit of justice were more important than the company itself," he shared. "If the company couldn't stand up for the things we believed, then it wasn't worth being a company at all."

Although Ben & Jerry's is known for its iconic flavors, Jerry stressed it was always about more than ice cream.

"It was a way to spread love and invite others into the fight for equity, justice and a better world," he wrote. "Coming to the conclusion that this is no longer possible at Ben & Jerry's means I can no longer remain part of Ben & Jerry's."

He concluded on a note of determination: "If I can't carry those values forward inside the company today, then I will carry them forward outside, with all the love and conviction I can."

In the caption of the post, Ben talked about his partner's difficult decision to step down and urged lovers of the ice cream company to sign a petition to free Ben & Jerry's from their parent company and allow them to return to advocating for the values they always have in their more than four decades as a brand.

"I never thought I would have to write this, but after 47 years Jerry has made the difficult decision to stand down from the company we built together. I am sharing his own words as he resigns from Ben & Jerry's," Ben wrote. "His legacy deserves to be true to the values we founded this company on, not silenced by @magnum. Help us #FreeBenandJerrys - sign up at https://freebenandjerrys.com."

The news also got the attention of celebrities, and fans of the ice cream brand alike, with Chance The Rapper taking to X to stand up for Greenfield, and pledged to continue Ben & Jerry's social work.

"Ben & Jerry's is the only major company I know of that has repeatedly lobbied for Black American Reparations. Two older men with access who have no incentive other than justice, are now being punished and silenced for their unwavering support of Palestine," Chance wrote. "I'm not heartbroken, im galvanized. We continue to fight the good fight ✊🏾."

Singer Paloma Faith also took to the comments of Cohen's post to share a similar message of support, writing, "Omg you are a hero. Im so sorry your hand has been forced in this way and im sorry the world is as it is. You are a testament to humility and compassion and I wish the world was full of you! Sending love and solidarity x."

TooFab has reached out to Unilever for comment.