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The co-founders of the well-known ice cream brand Ben & Jerry's has announced that corporate owner Unilever stopped the introduction for a new Palestine-themed frozen dessert product.

The entrepreneur, that established the business alongside his partner, revealed that he plans to personally create this new flavor as part of an individual collection showcasing issues the company was prevented from speaking out about.

Longstanding Dispute Involving Founders and Parent Company

This latest announcement intensifies the continuing disagreement between the internationally recognized ice cream maker and Unilever, the UK-based packaged goods corporation that acquired Ben & Jerry's for over two decades.

Both founders have asserted how the parent company and their ice cream division Magnum improperly prevented their company against "honouring its social mission".

The Fruit Sorbet becoming an Emblem of Support

Mr. Cohen announced through social media how he is creating a new watermelon-flavored sorbet, asking for public suggestions regarding naming options and additional components.

“I'm doing what they were prevented from doing,” the founder stated from his kitchen. “I'm creating a watermelon-based ice cream that calls for permanent peace in Palestine while demanding addressing the harm that occurred in the region.”

This particular fruit has become a symbol for solidarity with Palestinians due to its colors, which match the colors in the Palestinian flag – red, green, black and white.

Historical Activism plus Current Developments

Several years ago, Ben & Jerry's refused to sell its products in areas occupied by Israel, leading to the parent company selling their Israel business to a local licensee, thereby permitting continued sales in the occupied West Bank.

The new product line is being developed under Ben's Best, the activist dessert company that was first created in 2016 to support former political contender Senator Sanders with the flavor "Bernie's Back".

Leadership Changes plus Future Plans

Mr. Cohen indicated how he plans to create other frozen dessert varieties that address concerns which the company was silenced from speaking about openly due to corporate restrictions.

This development comes after co-founder Jerry Greenfield stepped down his position at the company in September, following many years with the organization, mentioning concerns that its independence was undermined following corporate moves to curb its social activism.

Previously, Mr. Cohen stated how "Jerry has strong compassion and this conflict with Unilever was deeply distressing him."

"My heart compels me to keep working inside the company to advocate for corporate autonomy so that the company can actualise its ethical purpose, the principles which established its foundation and has maintained for decades," he told journalists.

• Corporate owner restrictions on social activism
• Independent flavor creation by company founders
• The fruit-based product serving as social statement
• Continuing tensions between corporate ownership versus ethical values