By Alexander Marrow
LONDON, March 23 (Reuters) – The Ben & Jerry’s Foundation, a non-profit funded by the ice cream brand, said on Monday it had won a court ruling to join a lawsuit challenging its ultimate parent company, The Magnum Ice Cream Company, over contractual obligations and independence.
Unilever retains a 19.9% stake in Magnum, which formed when the consumer goods conglomerate spun off its ice cream unit in December.
Directors from the independent board of Ben & Jerry’s, now owned by Magnum, have challenged the company’s plans to appoint new directors and accused it of corporate overreach.
Since 2024, Vermont-based Ben & Jerry’s and its independent board have fought Unilever, and now Magnum, in a U.S. District Court in New York over what they say are efforts to undermine the brand’s social mission and the board’s autonomy.
(Reporting by Alexander Marrow; editing by Barbara Lewis)
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