The Magnum Ice Cream Company is in talks with the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation to fix what it deems are “governance” issues identified in a recent audit.
As the pending demerger of what has become known as TMICC from CPG giant Unilever approaches, the wrestling with Ben & Jerry’s rages on almost three months after its founders Jerry Greenfield and Ben Cohen called for independence for the ice-cream company ahead of the spin-off.
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While Unilever rejected that proposition, the gripe this time is with the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation, which is a separate and independent entity from the ice-cream business carrying the brand’s name.
In an audit conducted by a “reputable independent” concern, a spokesperson for TMICC said in a statement a “series of material deficiencies in financial controls” had been identified, along with conflict-of-interest issues.
The Foundation was set up in 1985 as a social justice organisation offering financial support to organisations based on profits generated from ice cream. It was the same year Ben & Jerry’s went public on the Nasdaq exchange and 15 years before Unilever bought the business in 2000.
It was described as a “separate independent charitable organisation solely funded by Unilever/The Magnum Ice Cream Company” in the statement provided by the TMICC spokesperson.
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By GlobalDataThe audit “was conducted as a matter of good governance and in preparation for the upcoming separation”, was how it was explained, and the results also included deficiencies related to “governance and other compliance policies”.
Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Greenfield is one of the Foundation’s trustees, referred to on its website as an ‘emeritus trustee’. However, he is reportedly stepping down from the role, a fact Just Food has asked the independent entity to clarify as this publication sought comment on the audit and findings.
At the time of writing, the Foundation had not responded to Just Food’s request for comment.
Greenfield had already resigned from Ben & Jerry’s in September, as revealed by his business partner Cohen on the social media platform X. Greenfield was disenchanted over a lack of independence from parent Unilever, particularly around expressing social values.
Only a week before, Greenfield and Cohen had penned their letter to Unilever requesting Ben & Jerry’s be allowed to operate as an “independently owned company” rather than be absorbed into the spin-off entity.
The TMICC spokesperson said the company’s audit findings had been “shared with the trustees” in an effort to “work together on implementing a strengthened governance framework rooted in transparency, accountability, and long-term resilience”.
The statement added: “The improvements proposed include a code of ethics, a conflicts of interest policy, due diligence and financial controls on grants, and trustee term limits. These are all standard policies and practices at charitable foundations.
“So far, the trustees have not fully addressed the deficiencies identified.”
The Foundation, however, already has a conflict-of-interest policy, which can be found on its website.
Meanwhile, TMICC’s spokesperson added in the statement: “Just as we have fully funded the Foundation in 2025, we stand ready to fund it for years to come but we expect that the trustees first fully address the issues raised and commit to these necessary governance improvements. This will ensure that the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation continues to be a powerful force for good in the future.”
Doubts had also surfaced earlier in November over the future of the chair of Ben & Jerry’s corporate board, Anuradha Mittal. She joined the branded ice-cream business in 2007 and became chairperson in 2018.
“Following investigations commissioned by the group and conducted by external advisers, in the opinion of the group the current chair of the Ben & Jerry’s board no longer meets the criteria to serve as a member of the Ben & Jerry’s board,” a registration document filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on 4 November read.
Meanwhile, Cohen posted on X the next day: “Magnum is trying to rip the heart out of Ben & Jerry’s and take away its voice entirely. The same culture of fear and silencing Trump uses in Washington DC is creeping into the boardrooms of multi-national corporations.”
Cohen and Greenfield have had a history of agitating with Unilever under their social mission agenda since the 2000 acquisition.
Earlier this year, Ben & Jerry’s filed a case in a New York court accusing the FMCG giant of ousting its then-CEO Dave Stever in what was deemed as an attempt by Unilever to silence the mission agenda.
In another court filing last year, Ben & Jerry’s said Unilever had tried to ban it from publicly criticising Trump. The ice-cream maker also filed a lawsuit that same year claiming Unilever had tried to stop it from expressing support for Palestinian refugees.
Unilever had sold its ice-cream operation in the Israeli-occupied West Bank in 2022 in an attempt to draw a line under a diplomatic row stemming from Ben & Jerry’s halting sales in the territory the previous year. In retaliation, Israel had threatened a boycott of the company’s products.
