Fray Bentos - Economy

Economy

Botnia S.A., a subsidiary of Finnish corporation Metsä-Botnia, has built a large cellulose factory in Fray Bentos to produce bleached eucalyptus pulp; production started in November 2007, first shipments in December 2007 from oversea port of Nueva Palmira. The investment in the project was about 1 billion USD and the factory directly or indirectly employs about 8,000 people. The project, however, is not without opponents. On 30 April 2005 about 40,000 Argentines from Entre Ríos, along with environmental groups from both countries, demonstrated in the bridge linking both countries; and since then, around ten to fifteen argentinians are blocking the international bridge to put pressure on the Uruguayan government to stop the factory claiming it will gravely pollute the Uruguay River. On 20 December 2005 a World Bank study concluded that the factory would not have a negative impact on the environment or tourism in either country. The paper mill started operating in November 2007 (see Pulp mill conflict between Argentina and Uruguay).

In 1899 a company called "Anglo" began making corned beef there, which was sold as "Fray Bentos Corned Beef" in the UK. Fifty years later the Fray Bentos company diversified into soups, meatballs and tinned fruit. During the 1990s the focus shifted to pies and puddings and Fray Bentos were taken over by the Campbell Soup Company, however, in 2006, 'Campbells UK' was acquired by Premier Foods. In 2008, Brazilian-owned Marfrig Group announced the reopening of the Liebig factory and the export of meat products, though at a lower capacity than the original factory.