Unilever closes Argentine ice cream plant

Unilever NV, the $45 billion Anglo-Dutch global consumer products giant that purchased Ben & Jerry's Homemade Inc. earlier this year, is closing an Argentine ice cream plant to refocus its efforts in Brazil.

The move mirrors a trend by companies to move ops from Argentina to neighboring Brazil, Reuters reported.

The 300-employee facility run by Unilever subsidiary Kibon is located roughly 180 miles northeast of Buenos Aires.

A company spokesperson was quoted by the news agency as saying the move reflects a corporate effort to put all its ice cream ops in Brazil, which enjoys Latin America's biggest economy. In addition to boasting a substantially bigger market and lower labor costs vs. its neighbor, Brazil's January 1999 currency devaluation also reportedly boosted its competitiveness against Argentina.

An Argentine official said the government is "very angry" with Unilever. The nation is facing a 15.4% unemployment rate, its highest in three years. The city of Villa Gobernador Galvez, where the plant is located, suffers a jobless rate of 25% and a 30% poverty level, the government official said.

Edited by Gerry Clark