British multinational consumer goods company Unilever has inaugurated a new production line at its ‘Mashreq’ Personal Care (MPC) plant in the 6th of October City Industrial Zone, Egypt. The new Sunsilk production line, Line 13, will contribute to increasing the plant’s annual production capacity in Egypt by 20 percent, with its entire output dedicated to export markets. This development aims to improve the factory’s role in meeting local market demand while establishing Egypt as a production, investment, and export base.
Unilever is one of the world's largest consumer goods companies, manufacturing over 400 household brands in beauty, personal care, home care, and food. The firm has been a key partner to Egypt over the past 20 years, ranking first across the country in the export of personal care products. Its manufacturing operations consist of 43 production lines, including Sunsilk shampoos, with five new lines added most recently in 2025 and 2026.
The Mashreq personal care factory spans an area of 22,000 square meters with 13,000 square meters of built-up area, producing 70,000 tons of several Unilever products annually across the personal care, beauty, and home care categories and exports to over 30 nations. Over 50 percent of Unilever’s production in Egypt is also meant to be exported to more than 40 countries, including the Arabian Gulf, Europe, Turkey, Africa, the Levant and Iraq.
The plant currently allocates 65 percent of its production capacity to exports; around 80 percent of the materials used in manufacturing are locally sourced, as the firm relies on over 110 local Egyptian suppliers. This strengthens the link between Unilever’s export growth and the local supply chain. Unilever has announced plans to add further production lines by 2027 to manufacture a range of products in Egypt for export abroad.
Unilever is planning on expanding its production capacity by over 50 percent within the next two years, taking steps to increase its reliance on renewable energy sources, such as water recycling initiatives and the use of recycled plastic in packaging. It will also invest 7.5 million euros in 2026, bringing its total investments in Egypt to 125 million euros since 2015.
The Egyptian government is targeting a higher local component level for products and raw materials across multiple sectors, while increasing the industrial sector's contribution to GDP from 14 percent to 20 percent by 2030. Egypt aims to maximize investment, which acts as a driver for increasing production, deepening local industry, transferring technology and expertise, and opening new opportunities for Egyptian companies.
Creating an appealing business environment is a key priority for the Egyptian government. Investment Minister Mohamed Farid said Egypt has been working to create an appealing business environment to attract new industrial companies through expanding its digital transformation, improving services for industrial investors, as well as developing legislative and regulatory frameworks that support companies in making long-term investments.
Key points
- Unilever inaugurates new Sunsilk production line at its ‘Mashreq’ Personal Care plant in Egypt's 6th of October City Industrial Zone.
- The new production line will increase the plant’s annual production capacity in Egypt by 20 percent.
- Unilever plans to expand its production capacity by over 50 percent within the next two years.
