Posted on 08/01/22
| News Source: Globe & Mail
Ben & Jerry’s and its parent Unilever Plc said talks had broken down to resolve their dispute over the sale of the ice cream maker’s Israeli business, which would allow its products in the occupied West Bank.
In a letter on Monday to U.S. District Judge Andrew Carter in Manhattan, a lawyer for Ben & Jerry’s said two weeks of mediation to settle out of court proved unsuccessful.
He asked Carter to restore Ben & Jerry’s request for a preliminary injunction to block Unilever from selling the Israeli ice cream business to local licensee Avi Zinger.
Unilever has said the sale closed on June 29 and cannot be undone. A lawyer for Unilever said in a separate letter to Carter that the company is prepared for a hearing on the proposed injunction.
Reuters reported last week that the talks had broken down. A Ben & Jerry’s spokesman declined to comment. Unilever did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Ben & Jerry’s had sued Unilever, which has owned the Burlington, Vermont-based company since 2000, on July 5.