This week’s announcement that Unilever, the parent company of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, will pull its products from store shelves in Yehuda and Shomron is something about which none of us should be silent.
The release from the Jewish Telegraphic Agency stated, “Following pressure from pro-Palestinian activists, Ben & Jerry’s announced Monday that it would stop selling ice cream in “Occupied Palestinian Territory.”
The Vermont-based ice cream brand said it would continue operating in Israel, suggesting that it is planning to pull its products from stores located in Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
“We believe it is inconsistent with our values for Ben & Jerry’s ice cream to be sold in the Occupied Palestinian Territory,” the company said. “We also hear and recognize the concerns shared with us by our fans and trusted partners.”
A subsidiary of the British conglomerate Unilever, Ben & Jerry’s also said it will allow its controversial contract with a licensee that manufactures the brand’s ice cream at a facility in Israel proper and distributes it in the region to lapse next year.
The company will maintain a presence in Israel “through a different arrangement” that will be unveiled in the future.
The catalyst for this decision was the pressure exerted by a group called Vermonters for Justice in Palestine (vtjp.org) that is totally committed to supporting the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, a program that seeks to ultimately eliminate the State of Israel as a Jewish homeland.
I suggest that those of us who buy Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream can easily disagree with the company’s policy by hitting back with a counter-boycott. We should stop buying Ben & Jerry’s products wherever they are sold in Israel so the company will know that in our opinion, their actions are despicable.
For those who are not satisfied with our local brands, many of which are premium products in their own right, they can opt for Häagen-Dazs to satisfy their palates, or any other so-called “premium brand.”
The world has entered a dangerous political phase where no one is prepared to say no to demands that are simply an attempt to snuff out the existence of Israel in every way possible. That is the clear intention of the BDS movement, any other stated reasons notwithstanding. Let us not give our enemies another victory.
The writer has lived in Israel for 37 years, is CEO of Atid EDI Ltd., a Jerusalem-based business development consultancy, and former national president of the Association of Americans & Canadians in Israel.