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The co-founders behind the well-known frozen dessert company Ben and Jerry's has claimed that corporate owner Unilever stopped the launch of a new pro-Palestinian ice cream flavor.

The entrepreneur, that co-founded the business with his partner, disclosed how he will personally create the controversial flavor within a personal series showcasing issues the company has been barred from speaking out about.

Longstanding Dispute Between Founders versus Parent Company

The recent announcement intensifies the continuing tension between the world-famous ice cream maker with Unilever, the British packaged goods corporation that acquired Ben & Jerry's for over two decades.

Both founders have claimed how Unilever along with their ice cream division the Magnum brand unlawfully blocked their company from "maintaining its activist principles".

The Fruit Sorbet becoming a Symbol for Solidarity

Mr. Cohen stated through an Instagram video how he is creating an innovative watermelon-flavored sorbet, requesting public suggestions for naming options plus potential ingredients.

“I'm accomplishing what they couldn't,” the founder commented in a cooking set. “I'm making a watermelon-based frozen dessert that advocates for lasting ceasefire in Palestine while demanding repairing the damage that occurred in the region.”

The watermelon has emerged as an emblem for solidarity with Palestinians because of its colors, which match those of Palestine's national banner – the distinctive four-color pattern.

Historical Activism plus Recent Changes

Several years ago, Ben & Jerry's ceased sales of its products in areas occupied by Israel, resulting in the parent company transferring their Israel business to an Israeli distributor, thereby permitting continued sales in the occupied West Bank.

The new dessert series will be developed under Ben's Best, the activist ice cream brand which originally established in 2016 to support former US presidential candidate Bernie Sanders via the product "Bernie's Back".

Management Changes and Future Plans

The founder revealed how he will create additional frozen dessert varieties focusing on issues that Ben & Jerry's was silenced from speaking about openly due to Unilever.

This development comes after co-founder Jerry Greenfield stepped down his position at the company in September, after many years of involvement, mentioning worries regarding how its independence had been undermined after corporate moves to curb its social activism.

Previously, Ben Cohen remarked that "Jerry has a really big heart and this conflict with our parent company was breaking it."

"My heart compels me to keep working inside the company to advocate for corporate autonomy so that the company can achieve its ethical purpose, the values which established its foundation and has maintained for over 40 years," he told media outlets.

• Corporate owner limitations on social activism
• Independent flavor creation by company founders
• The fruit-based product serving as political symbol
• Ongoing disagreements among corporate ownership versus ethical values