New R500m ice-cream factory for Unilever

L - R: Bennett Nikani, Ekurhuleni mayoral committee member for city planning and economic development, and Unilever South Africa chairman Peter Cowan in Midrand on Thursday. Image: BDLive

The multinational is investing about R500m in the facility. It says this will service rising demand in South Africa for ice-cream brands including Magnum‚ Cornetto‚ Gino Ginelli‚ Paddlepop‚ Frutarre and Rich n Creamy.

It said the development would complement additional capacity being built elsewhere‚ from Turkey to China‚ all using "green" technology.

It will also support Unilever's ambition of doubling the size of its business while reducing its environmental impact.

"Unilever's supply chain is central to the company's delivery of consistent‚ sustainable and profitable growth‚" Pier Luigi Sigismondi‚ chief supply chain officer at Unilever‚ said on Thursday. "This investment is ... one of the 30 new factories being built by 2015."

The new factory follows a R1bn Unilever investment announced early this year for new Home Care division facilities in Boksburg‚ near Johannesburg‚ and a R670m investment in a new savoury products factory in Durban announced at the end of 2011.

Source: Business Day