(TJV NEWS) The future of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream is at the center of a growing battle over ownership and identity, and its far-left founders, Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, appear to be losing the fight, The Blaze reported.

Earlier this month, The Wall Street Journal revealed that Cohen was attempting to organize investors to buy back the brand he and Greenfield sold to Unilever 25 years ago. The Blaze pointed out that this effort followed significant tensions with Unilever, including the recent ousting of the company’s anti-Trump CEO Dave Stever, reportedly due to his commitment to advancing Ben & Jerry’s far-left activism. This move came despite Cohen and Greenfield’s public letter of support for Stever.

Speaking to The Wall Street Journal, Cohen said, “In the year 2000, Unilever loved us for who we were. Now we’ve gone separate ways in our relationship. We need them to set us free.”

However, Unilever crushed Cohen’s dream this week, firmly stating that Ben & Jerry’s is “not for sale,” Bloomberg reported. “The separation and listing of ice cream is the option that we consider maximizes shareholder value; that has not changed,” Unilever CEO Fernando Fernandez said during a media call.

As of July 1, Unilever plans to spin off its ice cream division as the newly created Magnum Ice Cream Company, which will be listed in the Netherlands.

The Blaze noted that after decades of tolerating radioactive far-left politics at Ben & Jerry’s, Unilever seems eager to “decontaminate” the brand. Over the years, Ben & Jerry’s has been more focused on advancing a woke political agenda than on selling ice cream. Under previous leadership, the company:

• Urged Americans on the Fourth of July to recognize that the U.S. exists on “stolen Indigenous land” and commit to returning it

• Called for the defunding of police

• Opposed laws designed to ban men from competing in women’s sports, prevent teachers from hiding gender transitions from parents, protect girls’ locker rooms, and shield children from drag shows.

• Spread misleading claims about Kyle Rittenhouse

• Criticized the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision and advocated for expanded abortion rights

• Took repeated anti-Israel positions

• Released “Pecan Resist” in 2018 to support groups opposing President Trump’s “regressive agenda”;

• And worked alongside the leftist organizing group MoveOn Civic Action to promote Democratic candidates.

Even today, Ben & Jerry’s continues to act as a sugary vehicle for far-left politics, as The Blaze pointed out, denouncing “white people occupy[ing] a disproportionate number of positions of power,” promoting LGBTQ activism, pushing climate alarmism, launching a coconut-flavored Kamala Harris tribute ice cream, and pouring millions into radical causes.

However, the cost of such activism appears to have caught up with Unilever. The Blaze reported that in a March legal filing, Unilever acknowledged that Ben & Jerry’s decision to stop selling ice cream in Israeli settlements in 2021 led to serious consequences. “Many states found Unilever to be in violation of their anti-boycott, divestment, and sanctions laws,” resulting in lawsuits in the U.S. and Israel, accusations of antisemitism, significant sanctions, and divestments totaling hundreds of millions of dollars in Unilever stock.

In response, Unilever sold its Israeli ice cream operations to a local distributor, ensuring that sales would continue throughout Israel.

The Blaze also highlighted that the rift escalated when Ben & Jerry’s sued Unilever in November, alleging the parent company tried to suppress the brand’s efforts to support Palestinians and criticize Israel’s actions against Hamas terrorists. “Ben & Jerry’s is a company with a soul,” Cohen told The Wall Street Journal. “Business is the most powerful force in our society, and for that, it has responsibility to the society.”

While the legal fight continues, Unilever has taken additional steps to assert control. Reuters reported that Unilever recently threatened to cut off the roughly $5 million in annual funding it provides to the Ben & Jerry’s Foundation unless the foundation agrees to a swift audit of its donations.

The foundation responded Tuesday by noting that Unilever had supported its work without issue for years and expressed hope for a continued relationship with the new Magnum Ice Cream Company after the spin-off.

Meanwhile, Fernandez insisted that no threats were made regarding the funding. “It is our responsibility to ensure that these funds are used properly,” he said, according to Bloomberg, adding that allocations must be “absolutely in line” with the original acquisition agreement.