A legal row between Unilever PLC (LSE:ULVR) and its ice cream business Ben & Jerry’s has been resolved over the sale of its products in Israel.
“Unilever is pleased to announce that the litigation with Ben & Jerry’s Independent Board has been resolved,” it said, marking the end of an 18-month long dispute.
Consumer goods company Unilever sold the rights to its Ben & Jerry’s trademark to Israeli licensee Avi Zinger in June this year, meaning the ice cream would be stocked in shops across the West Bank.
In response, Ben & Jerry’s independent board filed a legal suite in July attempting to block the deal, citing it conflicted with its “core values.”
The board had announced a year earlier that it would no longer sell its ice cream in Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories.
Upon selling the rights, Unilever said: “Antisemitism has no place in society.”
Unilever acquired Ben & Jerry’s in 2000 but the deal saw the ice cream company’s independent board remain in place.
Unilever’s share price was up 0.4% on Friday, to 4,152p.