Agriculture & Foodالزراعة والأغذية

Egypt has become a genuine agricultural export power. It is the world's largest exporter of citrus — oranges alone account for millions of tonnes a year — and a major supplier of potatoes, onions, grapes, strawberries, and fresh herbs. Agricultural exports reached roughly $10.6 billion in 2023 and grew again in 2024, climbing by around 11% to some 8.6 million tonnes, sold across about 100 markets worldwide. Over the past five years exports have risen by 10–15% a year, helped by a push into high-value horticulture, rising quality standards for European and Arab buyers, and trade access ranging from the EU to the Mercosur bloc of South America.

Because farmland is so scarce, Egypt is pursuing some of the largest land-reclamation megaprojects on Earth. The flagship New Delta project — backed by around $15 billion in investment — is converting roughly 2.2 million feddans of desert west of the Delta into farmland, while Toshka in the far south, the New Egyptian Countryside, and projects in Sinai and West Minya add millions more. Driven by bodies such as the Future of Egypt Authority and the Ministry of Agriculture, these schemes aim to add some 4.5 million feddans in 2026 alone, lifting Egypt's cultivated area toward 12 million feddans. The goal is both to feed a growing nation and to create a vast new export base near the Mediterranean ports.

Egypt's great constraint is water. With pressure on the Nile and the effects of upstream dams, the country has leaned hard into modern irrigation — drip and precision systems, drainage-water recycling, and groundwater — to grow more with every drop. Policy runs on two tracks: strengthening food security by producing staples such as wheat, and boosting export revenue through profitable fruit and vegetable crops. Because Egypt is also one of the world's largest food importers — spending billions a year on wheat, oils, and oilseeds — there is a major opportunity in import substitution and food processing, adding value to crops at home rather than shipping them raw.

For investors, agriculture and food offer a broad menu of opportunities: large-scale farming on newly reclaimed land, agribusiness and export-crop estates, food processing and packaging, irrigation and agri-tech, and the cold-chain and logistics needed to move fresh produce to market. Major private players — from regional agribusiness giants to pioneering organic farms — are already operating at scale, a sign of the sector's confidence. Investors typically engage through the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, the Future of Egypt Authority, and the General Authority for Investment (GAFI) for land, licensing, and incentives.

• Role: ~14% of GDP and around a quarter of national employment.
• Land: intensive farming on only about 3% of Egypt's territory, mostly along the Nile.
• Exports: about $10.6 billion in 2023, growing ~10–15% a year, to roughly 100 markets.
• World leader: Egypt is the world's top exporter of citrus.
• Key crops: citrus, potatoes, onions, grapes, strawberries, herbs — plus staple wheat.
• Megaprojects: the New Delta (~$15bn), Toshka, the New Egyptian Countryside, Sinai, and West Minya.
• Expansion: a target of adding ~4.5 million feddans in 2026, toward 12 million cultivated feddans.
• Challenge & opportunity: water scarcity (driving drip/precision irrigation) and a large food-import bill (favouring local processing).
• Official channels: the Ministry of Agriculture & Land Reclamation, the Future of Egypt Authority, and GAFI.

Figures are drawn from recent Egyptian government statements and market analyses (2023–2026) and are approximate. Sources include Egypt's Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, the State Information Service, and agricultural market reports.