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One of the co-founders of the famous ice cream brand Ben & Jerry's has claimed how corporate owner the multinational conglomerate stopped the launch for a new pro-Palestinian frozen dessert product.

The entrepreneur, who established the company with Jerry Greenfield, announced that he plans to independently develop this new product within a personal series highlighting issues Ben & Jerry's has been prevented from addressing publicly.

Longstanding Conflict Involving Creators versus Corporate Owner

This latest announcement escalates the ongoing conflict between the internationally recognized dessert company with Unilever, the UK-based consumer goods corporation that acquired Ben & Jerry's for over two decades.

Both founders have claimed that Unilever and its ice cream arm Magnum improperly prevented their company from "honouring its social mission".

The Fruit Sorbet becoming an Emblem of Solidarity

The entrepreneur revealed via an Instagram video that he's developing a new watermelon-based frozen dessert, requesting public suggestions for the product's name and potential ingredients.

“I'm accomplishing what they couldn't,” Mr. Cohen declared from a cooking set. “I'm creating a watermelon-based frozen dessert that calls for lasting ceasefire in Palestine and calls for repairing the damage that was done there.”

The watermelon has become an emblem of solidarity with the Palestinian people because of its coloration, which mirror the colors in the Palestinian flag – the distinctive four-color pattern.

Historical Activism plus Recent Developments

In 2021, Ben & Jerry's refused to sell their merchandise in areas occupied by Israel, leading to the parent company selling the Israeli operation over to an Israeli distributor, thereby permitting ongoing distribution in the occupied West Bank.

The new dessert series will be developed under Ben's Best, the activist ice cream brand that originally created in 2016 to support ex- US presidential candidate Senator Sanders with the flavor "Bernie's Return".

Leadership Shifts plus Future Intentions

Mr. Cohen revealed that he plans to develop other frozen dessert varieties that address issues which the company was prevented from speaking about openly by corporate restrictions.

This development follows partner Mr. Greenfield resigned from the company in September, after many years with the organization, citing concerns regarding how the company's autonomy was compromised following Unilever's decision to curb its social activism.

At that time, Mr. Cohen stated how "Jerry has strong compassion and this conflict with our parent company was deeply distressing him."

“My conscience compels me to continue to work inside the company to fight for its independence ensuring that it can fulfill its ethical purpose, the principles that established its foundation while upholding for decades," he told journalists.

• Parent company limitations regarding social activism
• Personal flavor creation from original creators
• Watermelon flavor as political symbol
• Continuing tensions between parent company versus ethical values