Mozambique is expanding its domestic food manufacturing capacity with the construction of a new pasta plant in Nacala, in the country’s northern Nampula Province.

The facility is being developed by Merec Industries, Mozambique’s largest flour milling company and a subsidiary of Invictus Investment Company, and will complete the company’s pasta manufacturing presence across all three regions of the country.

Once operational, the plant, alongside an expansion of Merec’s existing Machava industrial facility in the south, will increase national pasta production capacity beyond domestic demand. The company expects this to enable Mozambique to meet its pasta requirements through local production, with additional volumes available for export.

The investment addresses a growing need to strengthen domestic food production. Pasta has become part of Mozambique’s basic food basket, according to Merec, making reliable local manufacturing capacity increasingly important to food supply and security.

Eng. Luís Aveleira, executive board member at Merec, said: “Through this investment, we want to help ensure that Mozambique has the capacity to meet the needs of its own market, reducing its dependence on imported products.”

Manufacturing closer to consumers

The Nacala facility will extend pasta production into northern Mozambique, bringing manufacturing closer to consumers and expanding the company’s ability to supply the national market.

Nacala is strategically positioned around a deep-water port and serves as a gateway to the Nacala Logistics Corridor, which connects Mozambique with Malawi and Zambia. This location could also support the distribution of surplus production into neighbouring markets.

The plant is expected to increase the availability of fortified pasta produced in accordance with Mozambique’s national food fortification requirements.

Beyond manufacturing capacity, the development is expected to create direct and indirect employment, develop local skills and involve businesses across the wider supply chain, including production, logistics, distribution and sales.

Building a regional food business

The investment forms part of a wider expansion strategy for Merec, which has recorded improved operating performance since joining Invictus Investment in January 2025.

Founded in 1998, Merec operates more than 15 production units across Matola, Beira and Nacala. Its activities include the production of maize and wheat flour, pasta, bread and animal feed, supported by a distribution network serving customers across Mozambique and abroad.

Invictus is looking to develop the business beyond its existing operations and into additional food categories, with ambitions to establish a regional food manufacturing platform serving the Southern African Development Community (SADC).

That strategy is also attracting further investment. In October 2026, Invictus and Helios Investment Partners announced an agreement under which Helios Fund V could acquire up to a 49% interest in Merec’s holding company. Invictus will remain the majority shareholder, with the transaction expected to close by the end of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and other customary conditions.

Merec and Invictus have also signed cooperation agreements with the International Finance Corporation to advance agribusiness development in Mozambique and across Africa.

For Mozambique, the immediate significance of the Nacala investment is the expansion of domestic processing capacity. By establishing pasta manufacturing across the country’s three regions, Merec aims to reduce exposure to imported products, strengthen local supply chains and create the production capacity to serve markets beyond its borders.