Merec builds first pasta factory in Northern Mozambique
The project will be the company’s first pasta-manufacturing facility in northern Mozambique and is intended to expand local production, reduce reliance on imports and support food security.
MOZAMBIQUE – Merec Industries, Mozambique’s largest cereal milling company and a subsidiary of Invictus Investment Company PLC, is constructing a new pasta manufacturing plant in Nacala, Nampula Province, marking a major expansion of the country’s food processing capacity.
The facility will be the company’s first pasta factory in northern Mozambique and its third nationally, strengthening domestic production while creating opportunities to supply neighbouring Southern African markets.
The investment is expected to bring pasta manufacturing closer to consumers in the northern region, improve product availability and reduce the country’s reliance on imported food products.
The factory will also increase access to high-quality fortified pasta in line with Mozambique’s national food fortification requirements.
Once operational, the Nacala facility, together with the planned expansion of Merec’s existing Machava industrial facility in southern Mozambique, is expected to raise the company’s total pasta production capacity beyond domestic demand.
This would enable Mozambique to meet its pasta requirements through local manufacturing while generating surplus volumes for export.
The project is also expected to generate direct and indirect employment, strengthen local technical skills and create business opportunities across the food value chain, including raw material sourcing, manufacturing, logistics, distribution and sales.
Nacala offers strategic advantages for the investment due to its deep-water port and access to the Nacala Logistics Corridor, which connects Mozambique with landlocked neighbouring countries, particularly Malawi and Zambia.
The location could therefore support moving finished products into regional markets and strengthen Merec’s export capabilities.
According to Luís Aveleira, executive board member at Merec, the investment will help the company improve its ability to serve the domestic market, support import substitution and develop production capacity for regional exports.
He noted that pasta has become part of Mozambique’s basic food basket, making local manufacturing increasingly important for food security.
The development forms part of Invictus Investment’s broader strategy to expand Merec beyond its existing operations into additional food categories and establish a regional food manufacturing platform serving the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
In October 2026, Invictus Investment and Helios Investment Partners announced an agreement under which Helios Fund V would acquire up to a 49% stake in Merec’s holding company, with Invictus retaining majority ownership.
The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals.
Merec’s expansion reinforces Mozambique’s ambitions to strengthen domestic food processing, develop industrial capacity and increase its participation in regional agricultural trade.
Sign up to HERE receive our email newsletters with the latest news and insights from Africa and around the world, and follow us on our WhatsApp channel for updates.
