Mauritius hunts investors for Mozambique land deal

* Mauritius eyes 23,500 hectares in Mozambique

* Record food prices hurt Mauritius economy in 2007/08

* Plans to sub-lease to investors

By Jean Paul Arouff

PORT LOUIS, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Mauritius said on Wednesday it is seeking investors to buy into a plan to lease farmland in Mozambique to ease growing food security worries on the Indian Ocean island.

"The government of Mozambique is proposing to lease the government of Mauritius some 23,500 hectares of land," the financial secretary of Mauritius' finance ministry, Ali Mansoor, told reporters.

"A meeting is scheduled for Feb. 2 in Mauritius with potential investors to discuss the projects and the way forward," said Mansoor.

He did not say how much the land would cost.