A total of 125 jobs will be lost in Dublin city following the decision by Unilever to close its Inchicore plant.

Unilever said that the decision to close the plant was taken following a detailed strategic review of its food manufacturing operations across Europe.

But the Inchicore closure was the only one announced by the company yesterday, a spokesperson confirmed.

Unilever said that the Inchicore plant could not compete effectively with larger scale and more specialised plants.

The decision will mean that the company's current workforce will be cut to 450 from 575 employees.

The Inchicore factory manufactures Knorr soups and sauces, Hellmann's mayonnaise and also blends and packs Lyons Tea.

The Knorr Soup factory has been operating in Inchicore since 1956, while Lyons Tea has had operations there since 1963.

The plant will cease operations by the end of March next year.

Following the closure, the company will transfer products currently made in Inchicore to other manufacturing sites within Europe.

The process of identifying these sites will begin immediately, Unilever said.

However, it said the decision will have no impact on the range of its products currently available in Ireland. Other Unilever brands include Flora, HB ice cream, Persil, Surf, Comfort, Dove and Lynx.

"This has been a very difficult decision for us," said Paul Murphy, chairman of Unilever Ireland.

"We have carried out a thorough analysis of the situation and have considered all options."

Mr Murphy said that further investment in the Inchicore plant would not have been sustainable for Unilever.

"In order to remain competitive, we need to have access to larger scale production," Mr Murphy added.

"Despite the best efforts of all concerned, our Inchicore plant, with its multi-product and multi-technology structure, does not have sufficient scale to be competitive.

"We very much regret the implications this decision will have for our employees and we have given them as much notice as possible.

"They have my assurance that we will support them in every practical way in order to minimise the impact of the factory closure and to help them secure alternative employment."

Siptu branch organiser John Dunne said that the announcement was devastating for the workers and for the area. Many of the workers and their families had long service with the company, he said.

Siptu will be meeting with management next to see if any of the jobs can be redeployed within the company, said Mr Dunne.