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One of the co-founders behind the well-known frozen dessert company Ben and Jerry's has announced that corporate owner the multinational conglomerate stopped the launch of an innovative pro-Palestinian frozen dessert product.

Ben Cohen, who co-founded the company alongside Jerry Greenfield, revealed that he plans to personally create this new product as part of an individual series showcasing causes Ben & Jerry's has been prevented from addressing publicly.

Longstanding Conflict Involving Founders and Parent Company

This latest announcement escalates the ongoing tension between the world-famous ice cream maker and Unilever, the British consumer goods corporation which acquired the ice cream brand since 2000.

The co-founders have asserted how the parent company and its ice cream arm Magnum unlawfully blocked their company from "fulfilling its ethical commitments".

The Fruit Flavor becoming a Symbol for Solidarity

The entrepreneur revealed via social media how he's developing a new watermelon-based sorbet, asking for public suggestions regarding the product's name plus potential ingredients.

“I'm doing what they were prevented from doing,” the founder commented from his kitchen. “I'm making a watermelon-based frozen dessert that calls for permanent peace in Palestine and calls for addressing the harm that was done there.”

The watermelon has become a symbol of support for the Palestinian people due to its colors, that closely resemble the colors in the Palestinian flag – the distinctive four-color pattern.

Previous Social Engagement plus Recent Developments

Several years ago, Ben & Jerry's ceased sales of its products in territories under Israeli control, leading to the parent company selling the Israeli operation to an Israeli distributor, thereby permitting continued sales within the occupied West Bank.

This upcoming dessert series will be developed under Mr. Cohen's personal brand, the activist dessert company which was first created in 2016 for endorsing ex- political contender Bernie Sanders via the product "Bernie's Return".

Leadership Shifts plus Future Plans

Mr. Cohen indicated that he plans to create other ice cream flavors that address concerns that the company was prevented from speaking about openly due to Unilever.

This development comes after partner Mr. Greenfield stepped down from Ben & Jerry's in September, after many years of involvement, mentioning concerns that the company's autonomy was undermined following Unilever's decision to curb its social activism.

At that time, Mr. Cohen commented that “My partner has a really big heart and the ongoing dispute with Unilever was deeply distressing him."

"My heart compels me to continue to work inside the company to fight for corporate autonomy so that it can actualise its ethical purpose, the values that it was founded on while upholding for decades," he explained to journalists.

• Corporate owner limitations regarding social activism
• Independent flavor creation by original creators
• Watermelon flavor as political symbol
• Ongoing disagreements between corporate ownership versus social mission