Latest news with #PeterTerKulve
Yahoo
05-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Unilever cuts off funding for Ben & Jerry's foundation amid tensions over Gaza, audit
Unilever is cutting off millions in funding for Ben & Jerry's charitable foundation after it refused to provide audit documents, escalating what has become a microcosm for corporate 'woke' wars. Peter ter Kulve, who runs Unilever's ice cream business, told Ben & Jerry's executives in an email that the foundation's trustees 'have continued to resist basic oversight' and are not cooperating with requests from corporate auditors ahead of the ice cream business' spinoff from Unilever. The probe into the foundation began in part because of its giving to pro-Palestinian organizations, Semafor reported earlier this year. 'It represents a marked departure from the norms of charitable organizations, for whom transparency is typically a bedrock operating principle,' ter Kulve wrote in the email, which was seen by Semafor. The Ben & Jerry's foundation distributed more than $5 million of Unilever's money in 2022, to mostly progressive organizations, and has done so ever since the quirky, left-leaning Vermont creamery was acquired by the corporate giant in 2000. Since then, Ben & Jerry's politics have been a headache for its parent, and the tensions between the two have grown more acute as the business community got swept into the culture wars — first pulled to the left in the mid-2010s, then retreating rightward under the second Trump administration. Ter Kulve wrote that management of the soon-to-be standalone ice cream company had met with foundation trustees and 'consistently sought to accommodate concerns' they raised, including switching audit firms and promising to keep certain information about grantees private. 'The Foundation is a powerful force for good and has played a meaningful role in advancing the Ben & Jerry's social mission,' ter Kulve told executives. 'We remain committed to that mission.' Representatives for Unilever and Ben & Jerry's did not respond to a request for comment. A lawyer for the foundation's trustees didn't immediately comment. Unilever decided to spin off its ice cream business last year. The audit of Ben and Jerry's foundation was part of that process. But it has devolved into a turf war between Unilever and the foundation, whose trustees claim their parent company is using the transaction as a pretense to attack its charitable giving. The troubles date back to at least 2021, when Ben & Jerry's said it would stop selling its products in Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories. Unilever sold the regional Ben & Jerry's license in response. Ben & Jerry's independent directors sued Unilever in November, accusing their parent company of silencing the ice cream maker's statements in support of Palestinian refugees. Other court documents allege that Unilever muzzled Ben & Jerry's social media posts that mentioned President Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and Nelson Peltz, the billionaire investor and Unilever director who introduced the president to Musk. Activist Robbie Starbuck told Semafor earlier this year he was planning a lobbying group to pressure corporate America to drop DEI targets, to prevent 'a situation where we have totally parallel economies,' with blue brands and red brands, because it's 'going to hurt our economy.'
Times
17-06-2025
- Business
- Times
Unilever and Ben & Jerry's row set to intensify with new boss
The already frosty relationship between Unilever and Ben & Jerry's looks set to get colder with the appointment of a contentious new ice cream boss. Unilever has proposed Peter ter Kulve to head the Magnum Ice Cream Company, its soon-to-be spun-off ice cream division that will house Ben & Jerry's, Cornetto and Wall's. The appointment is expected to be approved by Unilever's board in July before a planned listing this year. The FTSE 100 consumer goods group is set to have its primary listing in Amsterdam, with secondary listings in New York and London. Ter Kulve's appointment could be seen as a lightning rod for tension. He is named in a lawsuit by Ben & Jerry's, which accused him of 'eye-popping' ignorance and of undermining the brand's longstanding commitment to political and social activism — a mission central to the Vermont-founded business since it was founded in 1978. It marks the latest flashpoint in an increasingly bitter dispute. In March Ben & Jerry's accused Unilever of ousting its chief executive, David Stever, over his stance on social issues, claiming the decision was taken without the board's consent. The brand said Stever had been penalised for upholding its 'social mission'. The rift dates back to 2021 when Ben & Jerry's announced it would no longer sell its products in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, stating the mode was incompatible with its values. That decision sparked a backlash, including pressure from pro-Israel investors, some of whom sold their Unilever shares. Unilever subsequently sold the brand's Israeli business to a local licensee, a move that triggered a lawsuit from Ben & Jerry's, which was settled in 2022. But relations deteriorated again last November when Ben & Jerry's filed a new legal complaint, alleging that Unilever was violating the terms of the 2022 agreement by trying to suppress the brand's political messaging. The lawsuit claimed Unilever had issued repeated threats to staff, including Stever, in an effort to stifle the brand's advocacy, including its support for Palestinian refugees. In a further escalation, Unilever threatened in April to halt the $5 million in annual funding that it provides to Ben & Jerry's non-profit organisation. The consumer goods group was said to have asked the Ben & Jerry's Foundation to agree to an expedited audit of its donations if it was to continue its funding of the non-profit organisation. Ben Cohen, a co-founder of Ben & Jerry's, was reported this year to be exploring a potential bid to buy the ice cream brand back. Cohen founded the company with his childhood friend Jerry Greenfield in a petrol station in Vermont in 1978 and sold it to the FTSE 100 consumer goods group in 2000. Ben & Jerry's was contacted for comment.
Yahoo
17-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Exclusive-Unilever proposes Peter ter Kulve as CEO of listed ice cream unit
By Jessica DiNapoli and Richa Naidu LONDON (Reuters) -Unilever said on Tuesday that it has proposed its soon-to-be listed ice cream business will be led by Peter ter Kulve, whom the Ben & Jerry's board has accused in lawsuits of "eye-popping" ignorance and muzzling its social purpose policies. "Approval of the full board of The Magnum Ice Cream Company by the Unilever board is anticipated in July 2025," a Unilever spokesperson said in an emailed statement. Ter Kulve, who is currently the ice cream business' president, would become CEO of the Magnum Ice Cream Company (TMICC) that will list in Amsterdam by the end of the year. TMICC is home to six of the world's top 10 ice cream brands, including Ben & Jerry's, Cornetto and Wall's, and generated turnover of 8.3 billion euros ($9.59 billion) in 2024. The news deals a blow to the independent board of Ben & Jerry's, which has in recent years been publicly at odds with ter Kulve and its parent company. A representative for the board did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for Ben & Jerry's did not immediately respond for comment. ($1 = 0.8655 euros)
Reuters
17-06-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Exclusive: Unilever proposes Peter ter Kulve as CEO of listed ice cream unit
LONDON, June 17 (Reuters) - Unilever said on Tuesday that it has proposed its soon-to-be listed ice cream business will be led by Peter ter Kulve, whom the Ben & Jerry's board has accused in lawsuits of "eye-popping" ignorance and muzzling its social purpose policies. "Approval of the full board of The Magnum Ice Cream Company by the Unilever board is anticipated in July 2025," a Unilever spokesperson said in an emailed statement. Ter Kulve, who is currently the ice cream business' president, would become CEO of the Magnum Ice Cream Company (TMICC) that will list in Amsterdam by the end of the year. TMICC is home to six of the world's top 10 ice cream brands, including Ben & Jerry's, Cornetto and Wall's, and generated turnover of 8.3 billion euros ($9.59 billion) in 2024. The news deals a blow to the independent board of Ben & Jerry's, which has in recent years been publicly at odds with ter Kulve and its parent company. A representative for the board did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for Ben & Jerry's did not immediately respond for comment. ($1 = 0.8655 euros)
