[A] consumer organization has filed suit against Ben & Jerry’s accusing the Vermont-based ice cream giant of failing to practice what it preaches about its environmental and agricultural practices.
The Organic Consumers Association, in the suit against Unilever, the corporate owner of Ben & Jerry’s, says the company inaccurately markets its products as sourced from farms that meet certain environmental and agricultural standards.
The suit, filed in superior court in Washington, D.C., on Monday, asserts that the company, in misrepresenting itself in its advertising, is violating consumer protection laws.
Last year, the same group announced it had found evidence of glyphosate in samples of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream. The chemical is used in the pesticide Roundup.
The association argues in its suit that while Unilever markets Ben & Jerry’s products as containing milk from “happy cows” in “Caring Dairies,” the milk is actually from “regular factory-style, mass-production dairy operations.”
The suit says that the company’s practices contradict its claims of environmental friendliness, citing as evidence the discovery of glyphosate in some ice cream flavors. The lawsuit says glyphosate has been detected in nine Ben & Jerry’s flavors, including the popular Phish Food, Half Baked and Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough.
“In sum, Unilever is building on Ben & Jerry’s reputation as an environmentally responsible company to deceive consumers into believing that the Products are made with humane and environmentally responsible practices,” the suit states.
A Ben & Jerry’s spokesperson declined to comment on the case. A Unilever spokesperson also declined comment, citing corporate policies.
The glyphosate levels found in testing last year were far below limits established by the federal government. The highest concentration of glyphosate, found in Chocolate Fudge Brownie, was 1.74 parts per billion. According to a New York Times report, an adult would have to eat 290,000 servings of the ice cream per day to meet the limit set by the Environmental Protection Agency.
However, the pesticide is a subject of ongoing study, and there are indications exposure to lesser amounts could be harmful.
Following the announcement last year that the pesticide has been found in Ben & Jerry’s products, the company announced plans to phase out ingredients that are chemically dried using glyphosate and to roll out a new 100 percent organic line.
The suit also takes aim at St. Albans Cooperative Creamery, the milk supplier for Ben & Jerry’s.
The Ben & Jerry’s website claims that all farmers are required to comply with a “Caring Dairy” program, which sets standards for animal care, sustainable agriculture and labor practices.
The suit claims that fewer than a quarter of the members of the dairy cooperative meet the standards. And the cooperative does not separate milk produced by conventional means, and milk from “caring” farms, when it is processed, according to the suit.
The lawsuit also points out that cooperative members have faced fines or warnings from state or federal officials for improper environmental practices that have aggravated the state’s water pollution problem, and mentions one dairy farm that expanded its operation, located near one of Vermont’s most polluted watersheds, without obtaining the required state permit.
A St. Albans Cooperative Creamery official did not return a call requesting comment Wednesday.
Katherine Paul, associate director of the Organic Consumers Association, said consumers are increasingly interested in information about the ingredients in their food, and they’re often willing to pay a premium for responsibly sourced products.
“Corporations like Ben & Jerry’s know this. That’s why they market themselves this way,” Paul said. She noted that while companies are clearly willing to put money into advertising that casts them in the most positive possible light, “we think they should spend that money instead to actually walk the walk.”
The organization has brought similar suits against other major companies, including one in 2016, against Post Foods. That case was settled earlier this year, resulting in Post Shredded Wheat removing the term “natural” from its packaging, according to the group.
Paul said the organization is hoping the lawsuit against Ben & Jerry’s will encourage the company to require the dairies where its ingredients are sourced to improve their practices.
“Ultimately our goal is to push companies to live up to the claims,” Paul said.
