Egypt, the official partner country of FRUIT LOGISTICA 2016, sets its sights on growth

Egypt, the official FRUIT LOGISTICA 2016 partner country, has announced a record-breaking presence with the nation's key exporters at the leading international trade fair for fresh produce marketing. The Egypt pavilion in hall 2.1 will host the official FRUIT LOGISTICA 2016 opening on 3 February 2016. Exporting to 145 countries, the future looks positive for Egypt’s agricultural exports. Investment in this sector is high and packing stations to international specifications are being established to ensure continued growth in the agricultural market. Over the past ten years Egypt has set its sights firmly on growth and increased its exports of agricultural products by 226 percent. In 2014/2015 the country exported over two billion dollars worth of agricultural products, excluding rice. According to a report by the Foreign Agricultural Service/USDA - Office of Global Analysis, in 2014/2015 Egypt was the world’s largest exporter of oranges. Egypt’s unique geographic location in the Middle East combined with an expanding infrastructure base enhances the country’s position as a key global logistics hub for companies looking to do business in, or trade with, Europe, Asia and Africa. An important step was the agreement of 26 African countries in June this year to create a free trade area. The COMESA-EAC-SADC Tripartite FTA will be the largest economic bloc on the continent and the launching pad for the establishment of the Continental Free Trade Agreement (CFTA) In 2017, when CFTA is supposed to become effective, it will facilitate the movement of goods between member states. The safety and quality of food products and water supplies are of great concern to Egypt’s health authorities. They ensure safe, high-quality fresh produce while complying with numerous global standards and international certification bodies and institutions. They carefully monitor farms and exporters to ensure the quality of exported products. Egypt’s logistics and transportation sector plays an increasingly important role in international trade. About 90 percent of Egypt’s foreign trade is shipped through ports, while the country’s logistics capacity continues to expand hand-in-hand with the volume of trade. A current example is the expansion of the Suez Canal. It is expected to double the capacity of the Suez Canal from 49 to 97 ships a day. Egypt is determined to take firm steps to increase its agricultural exports. In 2014/2015, 727 Egyptian companies exported 743,000 tons to the European Union. During the same period overall exports reached 3.53 million tons. Outside the European Union major trading partners for Egyptian agricultural products include Saudi Arabia (18 percent of Egypt’s overall output), Russia (18 percent), the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and India. 21 percent of Egypt’s farming products are exported to the European Union where the main markets are the United Kingdom, Netherlands, Italy, Belgium, Greece, Germany, Romania, Lithuania, Spain and France. Egypt exports a wide variety of fruit and vegetable. In 2014/2015 oranges (1.22 million tons) topped the list of exports, followed by potatoes (650,000 tons), onions (492,000 tons), dry beans (182,000 tons), grapes (111,000 tons), tomatoes (109,000 tons), pomegranates (55,000 tons), green beans (44,000 tons), mandarins (36,000 tons), strawberries (34,000 tons), lemons (33,000 tons) and peanuts (26,000 tons). The farming industry and its related sectors are vital to the Egyptian economy, with cultivated areas reaching around 9 million acres. They employ 32 percent of the country’s workforce and account for 14.7 percent of GDP. At Fruit Logistica 2016 you can find the stand of Egypt in Hall 2.1.