Ice cream pulls Unilever down

THE NETHERLANDS – Consumer goods conglomerate Unilever has said that poor ice cream sales in Europe was partly to blame for a two per cent drop in brand growth in the first half of the year.

This offset the company’s growth in the spreads, dressings and savoury products. Despite that, the company still saw a 5% increase in pre-tax profit and an 11% jump in earnings per share over the same period last year.