Meet Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield, the founders of Ben & Jerry’s
Summary
Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield turned a £4,000-each investment and a converted Vermont gas station into one of the world’s most recognisable ice-cream brands. Childhood friends from Long Island, they abandoned a bagel shop plan, learnt ice-cream making on a cheap course, and by 1980 were selling pints in grocery stores. The brand became known not just for chunky flavours like Cherry Garcia and Half Baked, but for an outspoken social mission — from registering voters to calling out systemic racism.
Over decades the founders remained public faces and activists for the company. Unilever bought Ben & Jerry’s in 2000, promising independence for its social mission, but disputes over political stances — including a 2021 decision on sales in the occupied Palestinian territories and a 2024 lawsuit alleging suppression of statements about Gaza — culminated in Jerry Greenfield’s resignation in 2025. The brand has also faced supply-chain scrutiny, including a 2023 New York Times investigation into child labour in suppliers’ chains. In 2024–25 Unilever moved to spin off its ice-cream business, a change that will reshape Ben & Jerry’s corporate context.
Key Points
- Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield founded Ben & Jerry’s in 1978 in Burlington, Vermont, after taking an inexpensive ice-cream course.
- The brand grew quickly — pints hit grocery stores by 1980 and the company became a major global ice-cream name with iconic flavours.
- Ben & Jerry’s built a reputation for activism: supporting voter registration, climate causes, racial-justice statements and politically themed flavours.
- Unilever acquired Ben & Jerry’s in 2000 with promises to preserve its social mission, but tensions grew over political statements and control.
- Controversies include the 2021 decision to stop sales in the occupied Palestinian territories, a legal spat with Unilever, supply-chain child-labour reporting (2023), and Unilever’s 2024–25 spin-off plans.
- In 2025 Jerry Greenfield resigned, saying the independence to pursue the brand’s values — guaranteed at acquisition — had been eroded by Unilever.
Why should I read this?
Because it’s not just an origin story — it’s a saga about two mates who mixed great ice cream with unapologetic activism, and what happens when that ethos bumps up against corporate power. If you care about brand purpose, corporate takeovers, or how social causes shape consumer companies, this is the quick lowdown you need.
Context and relevance
Ben & Jerry’s sits at the intersection of culture, commerce and politics. The founders’ activism helped the brand stand out in a crowded market and influenced industry expectations about corporate purpose. Recent events — disputes with Unilever, legal battles, supplier-report controversies and a planned ice-cream spin-off — make the company’s future and its ability to publicly campaign on issues an important bellwether for corporate activism more widely. This is relevant to readers tracking ESG, brand risk, supply-chain ethics and the evolving relationship between founders and conglomerates.
Author style
Punchy: the story reads like a series of sharp turns — from a tiny Vermont scoop shop to global fame, then to simmering corporate fights that threaten the very independence that built the brand’s identity. If you care about why brands take stands (and what happens when they do), the details matter.