Local wheat boom helps Egypt curb import bill

Zawya

2 days ago

In response to recent reports claiming the local wheat procurement system failed to meet its targets this season, alongside allegations of the premature closure of some collection centers due to farmers' reluctance to supply wheat, the Egyptian Cabinet has issued a statement refuting these claims. It confirmed that the 2025 wheat procurement season is proceeding regularly, with operations continuing normally across various storage sites nationwide without any closures.
In this Factsheet, we explore the Egyptian wheat market's performance and how local wheat production supported Egypt in lowering its wheat import bill.
The wheat cultivation season in Egypt extends from mid-April to mid-August. During the ongoing season, the local farmers supplied the government with 91 million tons, a 16% year-on-year (YoY) increase.
The increase in local supply was driven by the government's decision to raise the procurement price by 10% to EGP 2,200 per ardeb (equivalent to 150 kilograms). This price is even higher than the imported wheat price. Additionally, farmers' dues are paid immediately within a maximum of 48 hours from delivery, which has encouraged farmers to grow wheat and supply it to the state in large quantities.
Despite the increase in supply from local farmers, Egypt remains one of the world's top wheat importers. In 2024, Egypt imported wheat worth $4.4 billion, accounting for 7.8% of global imports.
Egypt's largest wheat imports were mainly from Eastern European countries. Russia alone supplied Egypt with wheat worth $3.05 billion, representing 68.8% of the country's wheat imports. Ukraine and Romania followed with $595.1 million and $278.2 million, respectively.
In season 2022-2023, Egypt's wheat production slightly declined by 5.8% from 9.6 million tons to 9.1 million tons. This drop was mainly due to the shrinkage in cultivated area by 7% YoY.
The New Valley was the top wheat-producing governorate in 2022-2023, with 1.14 million tons or 12.5% of the country's total production. Sharkia and Dakahlia came next with production of 1.08 million tons and 773,864 tons, respectively.
Egypt's wheat consumption hit around 16 million tons in 2024, leading to a self-sufficiency rate of 49%. Despite initially targeting a 65% self-sufficiency rate for 2025, the government adjusted this target to 51%.
The government subsidized the local consumption of wheat flour and bread with EGP 124.3 billion, making up 77.7% of the total food subsidy budget for fiscal year (FY) 2025/2026.
© 2020-2023 Arab Finance For Information Technology. All Rights Reserved. Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (Syndigate.info).