CAIRO, EGYPT — A financial assistance package of 60 million euros ($66 million) from the European Union and French Development Agency will help Egypt expand its silo grain storage capacity by 420,000 tonnes, Reuters reported, citing the European Commission delegation in Cairo. Egypt, perennially the world’s largest wheat importer, has been working to increase its wheat reserves after Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine initially disrupted purchases. The additional storage would add 12% to Egypt’s current capacity of 3.5 million tonnes. The Foreign Agricultural Service of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) projects Egypt’s wheat production to remain unchanged at 9.8 million tonnes in 2023-24. This presents a challenge for Egypt, as consumption for the staple grain is forecast to increase by 2% to 20.5 million tonnes in the coming year.

Source: The North Africa Journal May 24, 2023 15:09 UTC