Ben & Jerry’s anti-Israel boycott said to have cost Unilever $26 billion

In the Bible, God makes it clear that He will bless those who bless Israel and curse those who curse Israel. This promise is seemingly ringing true for Unilever, the parent company of Ben & Jerry’s who have seen their stock price drop, wiping $26 billion (£19.2 billion) over the past six months.

On 19 July 2021, Unilever’s stock price was trading at 4,356. On Wednesday, exactly six months later, the price was 3,450. That’s a crash of 20.7%, which translates to the $26 billion price above.

Ben & Jerry’s ice cream company decided that it would no longer sell its ice creams in Judea and Samaria (the West Bank), ancient parts of Israel that include the key holy sites for Jews, including the Temple Mount, the Tomb of the Patriarchs and other key historic sites of the Jewish people.

They made this decision because of their anti-Israel board of directors, some of whom have long supported the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel. This anti-Semitic movement is not about bringing justice to the Palestinians, it is instead hellbent on destroying Israel through economic terrorism.

Thankfully, Israel and her allies are not standing by silently but have actively opposed this tactic.

The decision sparked backlash both from the Israeli government and Jewish organizations worldwide, with Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett stating that Ben & Jerry’s had “decided to brand itself as anti-Israel ice cream.”

Bennett took the matter up with Unilever CEO Alan Jope, telling him on July 20 that the Jewish state was taking the move very seriously and warning that there would be “severe consequences… [Israel] will take strong action against any boycott directed against its citizens.”

Unilever has also been under a great deal of pressure from the US States which have passed anti-BDS laws. States like New York and Florida divested hundreds of millions of dollars from the company towards the end of 2021, with most states following suit.

When you consider that Ben & Jerry’s generates far less each year than the amount of money Unilever has lost overall, it is very clear that boycotting Israel does not pay.

We pray that Unilever will turn away from their fallacy. We would prefer that they change their minds not because they are seeing consequences to their decision, but because it is the right thing to do.

It is never right to single out the world’s only Jewish state and to treat them differently than other countries, that is anti-Semitic. It’s never right to act in a way that goes against the indigenous rights of native people living in their land, in this case, the Jewish people living in their ancient homeland. Most importantly, it is never right to go against the promises of God.

When you go against God’s promises, you’re on the losing team.