Ben & Jerry’s

Ben & Jerry’s received a score of 85 on the 2025 Corporate Equality Index (CEI) from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), a political stakeholder group. The company recruits employees based on sexual identity issues. The company discriminates against vendors that do not promote divisive sex and gender policies, indicating it prioritizes sexual issues over merit (1)(2). In July 2021, the company announced that it would end sales in the West Bank, which the company referred to as “Occupied Palestinian Territory” (3). Upon pushback from local subsidiary Ben & Jerry’s Israel, the company suddenly decided to end the franchise. When the ice cream chain’s parent company Unilever attempted damage control by preemptively selling off the Israeli franchise, the company immediately attempted to sue Unilever (4).

Ben & Jerry’s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company will not donate to non-religious charities unless they embrace controversial sexual identity policies (1)(2). The company will not fund “religious activities” (3).

Ben & Jerry’s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company forces employees to attend multiple, controversial trainings on gender identity, sexual orientation, transgender issues, and divisive racial ideology. The company provides gender transition guidelines for its employees and a specific benefits guide with a comprehensive explanation of transgender services funded by the company (1)(2). It does not provide viewpoint protections for its employees (3).

Ben & Jerry’s publicly opposes election security legislation (such as the Georgia voting bill), and the company cites the ACLU and Color of Change as “Friends in the Movement” (1). The company has been a consistent supporter of the Black Lives Matter movement and has publicly supported the Defund the Police slogan and racial reparation policy (2)(3). The company posted a defense of the Equality Act on its site entitled “The Equality Act and Why We Need It” (4). The company has tweeted that the justice system “can’t be reformed” and “must be dismantled” (5). In 2020, the company joined the “#StopHateForProfit” boycott of Facebook intended to force the social media site to enact stricter speech rules (6). It signed onto the Human Rights Campaign’s Business Coalition on Anti-LGBTQ Legislation (7). The company opposed the Florida Parental Rights in Education Act, which would prohibit teaching gender identity and sexual orientation to kids in K-3rd grade (8). The company also posted a five-part pro-choice commentary on Twitter when the Supreme Court decision ending Roe v. Wade was leaked in 2022 (9). The company had published similar commentaries regarding state-level abortion laws previously (10). On March 10, 2025 it posted in support for National Abortion Provider Appreciation Day, linking to an article that includes advocacy for late term abortions and ways to support abortion clinics (11)(12). In May 2026, Ben & Jerry’s posted in support of the Supreme Court’s decision to block a nationwide ban on mifepristone, stating that while the ruling preserved access to the medication through telemedicine and mail delivery during the appeals process, ‘the work isn’t over’ and ‘we must keep pushing to protect abortion access for everyone.’ (13). The company is a Ceres Network Member, committed to carbon neutrality by 2040 (14)(15)(16). The company posted a Tweet statement on July 4, 2023 stating that “it’s high time we recognize that the US exists on stolen Indigenous land and commit to returning it” and “The faces on Mount Rushmore are the faces of men who actively worked to destroy Indigenous cultures and ways of life, to deny Indigenous people their basic rights” (17)(18). The company opposed various state and local legislation intended to protect parental rights, girls’ sports, bathroom facilities, and gendered spaces (19)(20). It opposed legislation in Iowa intended to protect parental rights, girls’ sports, bathroom facilities, and gendered spaces (21). The company is a member of the “Don’t Ban Equality” business coalition, which advocates against any abortion restrictions because they are “bad for business” (22). The company’s CEO, Matthew McCarthy, denounced various states’ legislative efforts to protect election integrity and security (23). The company scored a 100 out of 100 on the 2023-2024 Corporate Equality Index (CEI) from the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), a political stakeholder group (24)(25).

Ben & Jerry’s provides a benefits package for employees that covers travel/lodging costs for an abortion and transgender medical procedures for covered employees and dependents, including children (1)(2)(3). The company’s HRC 2025 CEI rating indicates the company covers transgender related costs for its employees and their children, including paid short-term leave, puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones, chest surgeries, genital surgeries, medical visits and lab monitoring, travel and lodging. By allowing a political stakeholder group to dictate operations, the company increases health care costs and risks dividing employees, alienating customers and harming shareholders (4)(5). The company partnered with March for Our Lives, a gun-control group, in an effort to remove police from schools (6). In 2018, the company donated $25,000 to Color of Change (7).  Over a span of 14 months between 2018 and 2019, the company paid $1.4 million for Facebook ads advocating for criminal justice reform (8). In 2017, it donated to the Anti-Defamation League and called upon others to do the same (9). Otherwise, there are no publicly known cases of the company using corporate funds to advance ideological causes, organizations, or policies (10).

Ben & Jerry’s does not operate a PAC or engage in lobbying at this time (1)(2)(3).