Farmers urge gov’t to impose import duty on sugar

The Agriculture Ministry has asked the government to look into proposals submitted by the Farmers’ Syndicate to control sugar imports, ministry sources told the local press. Farmers are urging the government to protect the local market by either imposing protectionist tariffs on sugar or placing limits on quantities of imported sugar. Local producers are coming under pressure in light of an increase in domestic production and a drop in global prices. Egypt produced a record 2.48 mn tonnes of sugar crop this season, marking an increase of some 320,500 tonnes y-o-y, Agriculture Minister Ezz El-Din Abu Steit said last month.