Johannesburg - Unilever will spend R500 million on a new state-of-the-art ice cream factory in Johannesburg to increase its footprint in South Africa.
The factory is expected to create 180 permanent jobs, with more than 200 employed during the construction phase. It will span 40 000m2 and will begin production in June 2015.
Unilever’s head of manufacturing in South Africa, Sandeep Desai, said yesterday that the multinational was the local market leader in ice cream and planned to increase consumption locally. “It’s about making the right ice creams available, at the right time, at the right price.”
He said its Ola brand, which makes Magnum, Cornetto, Solero and Paddlepop among others, had grown sales. Desai said it had begun stocking up for the festive season as sales peaked as early as August and began tapering off in February.
Desai said the country’s largest market was Gauteng.
Department of Trade and Industry deputy director-general Pumla Ncapayi said the department would inject R7 million into Unilever’s employee training programme as the project met the criteria for tax allowance incentives given to projects in industrial parks and zones. She said it was encouraged by Unilever’s plans to source local ingredients and inputs in the construction and production phases.
Unilever and the department have collaborated on two other factories, a savoury dry food plant in Durban and a homecare factory in Boksburg.
Ncapayi said the new ice cream factory and the other plants were environmentally friendly, one of the criteria in awarding the tax incentive.
“Manufacturing is key to the economy and you have to look at the broader picture, in terms of the investment in the economy, the jobs created and the opportunity to enhance skills and meet commitment to green structures,” she said.
US brand Baskin-Robbins said it was seeking local partners to help navigate the local market. “Baskin-Robbins has identified a great opportunity in South Africa. Since ice cream is known within supermarkets (as pre-packaged treats) and soft serve, we feel we have a unique opportunity with hard scooped ice cream and ice cream cakes,” it said. - Business Report