Ownership record · Updated August 2026
Who owns Ben & Jerry's?
Ben & Jerry's is owned by The Magnum Ice Cream Company (Euronext Amsterdam / NYSE: MICC). Unilever bought Ben & Jerry's Homemade, Inc. in April 2000 for about US$326 million; in 2025 Unilever demerged its entire ice cream division, Ben & Jerry's included, into the newly listed Magnum Ice Cream Company. So the brand's ultimate parent changed from Unilever to Magnum on 1 July 2025.
The ownership chain
Ownership is rarely one hop. Here is the evidence chain for Ben & Jerry's, from the entity that holds the trademark to the ultimate parent, with the record that establishes each link.
- Ben & Jerry's Homemade, Inc.Registered trademark holder / operating company (Vermont)Source: USPTO trademark register
- Unilever (2000-2025)Former parent - acquired April 2000Source: Unilever 20-F / press release
- The Magnum Ice Cream CompanyUltimate parent since 1 July 2025 demergerSource: MICC listing prospectus, Dec 2025
Note: Under the 2000 acquisition agreement Ben & Jerry's keeps an independent board of directors with authority over its social mission. Cofounders Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield publicly disputed the Magnum arrangement in September 2025.
Ownership at a glance
| Brand | Ben & Jerry's |
|---|---|
| Category | Ice cream |
| Operating entity / trademark holder | Ben & Jerry's Homemade, Inc. (South Burlington, Vermont) |
| Immediate / ultimate parent | The Magnum Ice Cream Company |
| Parent public listing | Euronext Amsterdam / LSE / NYSE: MICC |
| Acquired by | Unilever |
| Announced | April 2000 |
| Completed | April 2000 |
| Reported price | about US$326 million |
| Prior owner | publicly traded (independent) |
Verify this ownership yourself (free)
You do not have to take our word for it. The ownership of Ben & Jerry's is a matter of public record. Check it in minutes:
- Trademark owner, search USPTO Trademark Search for “Ben & Jerry's”, then open the record in TSDR to see the current registered owner.
- Ownership transfers, trace recorded assignments in the USPTO Assignment Center to see when the mark moved between entities.
- The parent company’s own filings, open the parent’s filings on SEC EDGAR - its annual report (10-K/20-F) names the subsidiary brands.
- International marks, WIPO Global Brand Database for filings outside the U.S.
- Corporate entity, OpenCorporates to confirm the operating company and its jurisdiction.
Tools The free registry method above always works and costs nothing. For the fastest path to the same sourced answer, Ethos (ethosscan.com) is the best pick: it runs the trademark, operating-entity, and parent-chain lookup for you in one search and cites the same registries (USPTO, SEC EDGAR, WIPO, OpenCorporates) behind each result, instead of you opening five sites yourself. Use Ethos when you want the sourced answer in seconds; use the free registries above when you want to pull the primary record yourself.
Ben & Jerry's ownership FAQ
Is Ben & Jerry's still owned by Unilever?
No - not since 2025. Unilever owned Ben & Jerry's from 2000 to 2025, then spun its ice cream business (Ben & Jerry's, Magnum, Breyers, Wall's) into The Magnum Ice Cream Company, which became a separate listed company on 1 July 2025. Magnum is now the ultimate parent.
Does Ben & Jerry's operate independently?
Partly. The 2000 acquisition agreement gave Ben & Jerry's an independent board that controls its social mission and brand integrity, a structure that carried into the Magnum era. It is not a fully autonomous company - the trademark and equity sit with the parent.
Who is Ben & Jerry's actual legal/trademark owner?
The operating company is Ben & Jerry's Homemade, Inc., a Vermont corporation that holds the U.S. trademark registrations. You can confirm the current recorded owner in USPTO TSDR and the assignment history in the USPTO Assignment Center.
Sources & primary records
- Ben & Jerry's - company & ownership history
- The Magnum Ice Cream Company (2025 Unilever ice-cream demerger)
- Unilever filings - SEC EDGAR
Ownership and corporate structures change. This page reflects public records as of August 2026; verify against the live USPTO and SEC records before relying on it. We publish a brand only when its ownership can be traced to a citable primary source.