Unilever is to expand an ice cream plant in the US, a move that will create over 400 jobs.

The Breyers ice cream owner is to spend over US$108m on extending its site in Covington in Tennessee. The plans include an 11,000 sq ft “engine room expansion”. Some 428 jobs will be created, Unilever said.

“Investing in sustainable manufacturing is an important part of Unilever’s strategy of investing back for growth in America,” Kees Kruythoff, president of Unilever’s North American operations, said. “Through the expansion and upgrade in Covington we are creating a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, enabling Unilever to sustainably and responsibly grow our US ice cream business.”

Unilever added ice cream to the lines it produced at the Covington site four years ago. The plant had been producing Slim-Fast products. That move came after Unilever announced it was to close two ice cream plants in Maryland and Massachusetts.