Company history
National Foods traces its lineage back to 1920, when Mark Harris Manufacturing Co sold a stake to the British South Africa Company and expanded milling operations into Salisbury (now Harare) and Bulawayo. The Gloria Flour brand launched that same year. Through a series of mergers, most notably the joining of the Rhodesian Milling and Manufacturing Company (RMMC) lineage with Palte Harris Industrial Holdings, the Gloria and Red Seal brands were brought together under National Foods Holdings Limited. See the full history timeline for the complete story.
Ownership
National Foods is listed on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange. Innscor Africa holds 37.73% of the company, Tiger Brands of South Africa holds 37.45%, and the National Foods Workers Trust holds 9.85%, with the remainder held by the public.
Milling operations
National Foods mills wheat in Harare and Bulawayo. The Bulawayo plant underwent a US$6.5 million automation upgrade, lifting daily wheat milling capacity to 300 tonnes at 90% capacity utilisation, well above the national industry average of 52%. An 11,000-tonne silo at the same site provides 36 to 40 days of milling stock. In total, National Foods has invested US$30 million in its milling infrastructure since 2022.
Flour brands
National Foods produces three flour brands: Gloria, the company's flagship and Zimbabwe's oldest continuously produced food brand; Red Seal, dating to the Harris Bros lineage; and Better Buy, a value-tier range. See the full Gloria Flour profile for the complete product range.
Wider portfolio
Beyond flour, National Foods' product portfolio spans maize meal, rice, salt, pasta, snacks, and stockfeed, making it one of Zimbabwe's most diversified food manufacturers.