Ben & Jerry’s founders Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield are exploring the possibility of reaching a deal to separate their brand from its current owner, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday.
The ice cream brand is owned by Unilever spin-off Magnum Ice Cream.
The co-founders discussed a deal with Pete Stavros, founder of Expaning ESOPs, to separate the company and structure it under an employee stock ownership plan, the WSJ said, citing Stavros and Cohen.
The structure would give stock to rank-and-file employees while providing the company with tax benefits, the report added.
But any deal would have to be approved by Ben & Jerry’s owner Magnum, which told Reuters in an emailed statement that “Ben & Jerry’s is not for sale and, more importantly, is thriving within The Magnum Ice Cream Company.”
“Removing Ben & Jerry’s from Magnum would result in significant dissynergies, investments in social mission would decrease and unit sales prices would inflate,” he adds.
Ben & Jerry’s has a history of vocal social activism and its founders and board of directors have repeatedly clashed with former parent company Unilever over political and ethical positions.
Magnum also sought to weaken control of Ben & Jerry’s independent board, which was reduced to just two members.
Cohen told the WSJ that “all he could do is try to generate more public pressure on Magnum to sell.”
Ben & Jerry’s and representatives for the co-founders and Stravos did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
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