Is Ben & Jerry's on the brink of collapse?
The woke ice cream company is facing a class action lawsuit over its supply chain that allegedly employs migrant child labor.
The lawsuit followed an exposรฉ from The New York Times, which uncovered child labor infractions by major U.S. companies. The report said migrant child labor is used to process milk in Ben & Jerry's ice cream.
According to the Daily Caller, plaintiff Dovid Tyrnauer alleges he would not have purchased or would have paid less for Ben & Jerry's products if he had known migrant child labor was used. The ice cream brand aligns itself with ethically-sourced products, which the plaintiff claims is a โbreach of consumer trustโ that amounts to โpompous virtue-signaling.โ
โIf migrant children needed to work full time, it was preferable for them to have jobs at a well-monitored workplace,โ said Ben & Jerry's head of values-led sourcing, Cheryl Pinto.
The class action lawsuit also claims Ben & Jerry's uses social justice issues as part of its marketing. The ice cream seemingly promotes politicians such as Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and former President Barack Obama. They also make limited ice creams for social justice issues such as โChange Is Brewingโ for police reform in 2021, โPecan Resistโ against former President Donald Trump in 2019 and โEmpower Mintโ for alleged voter suppression in 2016. The most recent ice cream in 2023 promotes the โmission to end modern slavery in cocoa farming.โ
Following The Times report, Ben & Jerry's issued a lengthy statement in response to the claims.
โWe are deeply concerned by the claims made in this story, and do not tolerate any suppliers who are not adhering to the law. Let us be extremely clear: Ben & Jerry's stands in strong opposition to child labor. We have a long history of standing for justice and equity, and using our business to improve the lives and livelihoods of those we serve and work with. These beliefs do not stop at our company's supply chain,โ Ben & Jerry's said.
โIt is an established fact that the dairy industry comes with profound social and environmental challenges. It is with this understanding that we, over the lifetime of the company, have sought to implement innovative solutions on dairy farms that promote thriving livelihoods for farmers and farmworkers, support animal welfare, and mitigate the negative environmental impacts of dairy farming.โ the company continues.
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1 Comment
Theyre many other brands of Ice cream aside B&J to buy