Second plant closing for Unilever in three months.

Unilever has announced that it will be closing its ice cream manufacturing plant in Hagerstown, Maryland which manufactures Klondike, Popsicle, and Good Humor novelty ice cream, as well as Ben & Jerry's cones and Breyers Fruit Bars. Production will be transferred to other sites within the Unilever network in several phases over the next two and a half years, according to Unilever, with production to cease and the final plant closing by the end of 2011. The announcement follows by two months the announcement that the company's ice cream production facility in Framingham, Massachusetts.

"Continually achieving greater efficiencies across our Supply Chain network is essential to our business," said Steve Rosemary, director of manufacturing, Unilever Ice Cream. "An extensive and careful analysis has shown that greater efficiencies can be achieved by shifting production to other company plants in the U.S. This decision was not easily made, and in no way reflects the dedication or performance of our colleagues at the Hagerstown facility."

The decision to close the plant will affect 460 salaried and hourly employees. Local press reports indicate that Unilever is negotiating details about severance payments with the union representing the workers and that the company would help with job placement and other benefits. When Unilever announced the closing of the Framingham plant, which affected 201 salaried and hourly employees, it reported that those workers would be able to apply for jobs at other Unilever ice cream plants, including the Maryland plant. The Framingham plant is scheduled to close in 2010.

The plant has been in operation for more than 25 years. It was first opened by Gold Bond Ice Cream, a leading frozen novelties manufacturer, which was acquired by Unilever 20 years ago and combined with the company's Breyers Ice Cream subsidiary. Both the Maryland and Massachusetts closings follow last year's announcement by Unilever that it would be looking to consolidate its ice cream operations around the globe.

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