Gruma, the world’s biggest producer of corn flour, will invest 792 million pesos (US $46.5 million) over the next five years to build a new factory and renovate an existing plant, both in the state of Puebla.

The new site will be devoted to manufacturing snack foods and will have the capacity to produce 200 tonnes per year. Construction will cost US $38 million.

The company will also enlarge its Mission Foods México plant in Huejotzingo, located near Cholula, increasing production to 70,200 tonnes annually. Mission Foods México is a Gruma subsidiary that makes packaged corn and flour tortillas as well as tostadas and corn chips.

The investment will be spread out over five years, with 440 new jobs created across both plants, of which 55% will be allocated to women, the company said. The construction project will also create over 100 indirect jobs.

Making the announcement, Mission Foods México CEO Nader Badii González thanked Puebla Governor Sergio Salomón for his administration’s cooperation in supporting the company’s growth in the state.

“We arrived in Puebla in 2016 with an initial investment of 1 billion pesos (US $ 58.6 million) and have generated more than 500 jobs, 60% were filled by women,” he said. “This new investment reinforces our commitment to the state.”

Salomón praised Gruma and Mission for demonstrating confidence in Puebla by reinvesting and expanding their presence in the state. State Economy Minister Jorge Ermilo Barrera Novelo pointed out that the food industry in Puebla contributed 65 billion pesos (US $ 3.8 billion) to the state’s GDP last year and provided 67,000 jobs.

In January, the manufacturing giant, headquartered outside Monterrey, Nuevo León, reported a 5.3% growth in year-on-year fourth-quarter earnings. The increase was largely driven by sales in Mexico which rose 7%.

Also in January, Gruma revealed plans to invest US $89 million in a new plant in Hunucmá, Yucatán, over the next six to eight years. That factory will have the capacity to produce 56,000 tonnes per year of packaged tortillas, tostadas, baked goods and snacks and is expected to generate 800 direct and 2,000 indirect jobs in Yucatán.

With reports from El Economista and Milenio