The company will simplify the structure of its UK operations down to two units from the current five. One unit will consolidate the three food operations, the other will deal with the company's home and personal care products.

The changes are part of an ongoing consolidation of its businesses worldwide at the country level, under a programme the company labels "One Unilever".

Some analysts say the reorganisation sets the company up for a split of its food production divisions from the home and personal care units. However, Unilever's chief executive, Patrick Cescau, has consistently denied the claims.

In the UK the company said the consolidation will result in a leaner, simpler business able to market its products more efficiently. The changes will involve Unilever merging its three offices in the UK into one site at Leatherhead, Surrey.

The changes will also generate "significant" savings, allowing the business to increase investment behind its brands, said Dave Lewis, chairman of Unilever's UK operations.

"The next change accelerates our transformation and affords us the opportunity to grow more consistently and rapidly," he said. "The organisation will retain its deep brand and category knowledge, but will be simpler and faster with a greater emphasis on our retail customers."

Trevor Gorin, head of Unilever's media relations section, said the programme, which started in 2005, will not affect manufacturing operations.

"We have improved business performance," he told FoodProductionDaily.com. "But we are still not competitive enough in the UK."

Unilever also plans to cut about 300 to 350 jobs in its marketing, sales, finance and human resources operations by the end of 2008.

In the first quarter of 2007 Unilever achieved underlying sales growth of 5.4 per cent to €9.5bn. Margins were down slightly to 13.7 per cent from 14.7 per cent over the same period the previous year, the company said.

The company blamed the decline in part to increased spending on restructuring the company's operations to increase its competitiveness against global rivals. Increased transportation and raw material costs has pushed Unilever to invest in restructuring operations designed to offset increased spending.

In France, Unilever is planning to cut up to 200 jobs in an effort to rebuild its business in the country. Unilever,, which holds brands such as Carte D'Or ice cream and Lipton tea, is set to make the job cuts at its factory in Rueil-Malmaison, on the outskirts of Paris.

The group, like several of its food industry rivals, has struggled against low consumer confidence in France over the last few years.