Ben & Jerry’s co-founder claims Unilever prevented the release of a Palestine-themed ice cream.

Ben Cohen, co-founder of Ben & Jerry’s, claims that the ice cream maker’s parent company, Unilever, prevented the launch of a flavour intended to show “solidarity with Palestine.”

Cohen announced that he will independently create the flavour as part of a personal project highlighting causes the company has allegedly been barred from supporting publicly.

Ben & Jerry’s has long been known for its outspoken stance on political, environmental, and social issues, including the Israel-Gaza conflict. The BBC has contacted Unilever for comment.

Cohen’s comments further escalate the long-running dispute between the Vermont-based ice cream brand and Unilever, the British consumer goods giant that acquired Ben & Jerry’s in 2000. The co-founders have accused Unilever—and its ice cream subsidiary Magnum, which is being spun off—of unlawfully preventing Ben & Jerry’s from “honouring its social mission.”

In an Instagram video posted Tuesday, Cohen revealed plans for a new watermelon-flavoured sorbet and invited followers to suggest a name and additional ingredients. The watermelon, whose red, green, black, and white colours echo the Palestinian flag, has become a symbol of solidarity with Palestinians.

“I’m doing what they couldn’t,” Cohen said in the video, filmed in a kitchen. “I’m making a watermelon-flavoured ice cream that calls for permanent peace in Palestine and for repairing the damage done there.”

In 2021, Ben & Jerry’s halted sales in Israeli-occupied territories. Unilever later sold the brand’s Israeli operations to a local licensee, allowing its ice cream to remain available in the West Bank.

Cohen said the new flavour will be developed under Ben’s Best, his activist ice cream brand founded in 2016 to support then–presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. The new dessert will be produced independently of Ben & Jerry’s, he added.

He also plans to develop additional flavours addressing issues that Unilever has prevented Ben & Jerry’s from speaking about publicly.

Earlier this year, co-founder Jerry Greenfield stepped down from Ben & Jerry’s, citing concerns over the company’s diminishing independence. Cohen said the conflict with Unilever “was breaking Jerry’s heart,” adding that he remains committed to advocating for the company’s founding social mission.