Spoiled ice cream: Unilever auditing Ben & Jerry's political spending

Ben and Jerry's parent company, Unilever, is conducting an audit into the ice cream company's social and political spending, "with a focus on its grants to progressive and pro-Palestinian groups, including to an organization with ties to two of the foundation’s trustees," according to a report today (Tuesday) by Semafor.

Unilever is reportedly seeking to spin off its ice cream division into a stand-alone company. As part of that effort, they aim to examine the funding of Ben & Jerry's social and political donations and contributions, which include a significant mount of money to pro-Palestinian organizations and people.

This audit is but the latest step in an ongoing clash between Unilever and Ben & Jerry's over the latter's pro-Palestinian activism, which has led to significant public embarrassment for the parent company.

This was especially the case in 2021, when Ben & Jerry's decision to refuse to sell ice cream in Judea and Samaria created a media firestorm that led Unilever to sell the regional license and allow the ice cream to continue to be sold.