Processed food exports hit fresh high in 2024

Egypt’s processed food exports hit a record USD 6.1 bn in 2024, growing 21% y-o-y thanks to a “significant expansion in export markets” — especially the Arab, European, and US markets — the Food Export Council said in a press release.

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The biggest buyers: Arab countries as a whole took the largest share of Egyptian processed food exports, buying 54% of our exports for a total of USD 3.3 bn. The EU claimed the second spot, with the bloc buying up 19% of our exports for some USD 1.2 bn — up 32% from 2023.

Saudi Arabia topped the list as Egypt’s largest single-country export destination with USD 491 mn worth of exports, up 23% y-o-y. Sudan came in second place with USD 412 mn worth of exports — a 12% y-o-y decline. Meanwhile, Dutch exports of Egyptian processed food saw the largest expansion with a 103% y-o-y jump to USD 259 mn worth of exports.

Soft drink concentrates came on top of the processed food products sent abroad, registering USD 532 mn in total value and showing growth of 6% y-o-y. Flour, sugar, frozen strawberries, and edible oils rounded out the rest of the list for the year.

Untapped potential and room for more growth: “With targeted investment in capacity and machinery, quality standards, and market penetration strategies, Egypt can position itself as a regional food processing hub, capturing a much larger share of regional demand. Private equity firms such as RMBV are positioning themselves as catalytic investment capital to achieve exactly this outcome,” RMBV Managing Partner Ahmed Badreldin told EnterpriseAM.

Strengthening Egypt’s manufactured food exports has been a key priority of late, with global food companies — including those from Europe, Turkey, and other countries in the Middle East — already maintaining manufacturing and export bases in Egypt. Incorporating tech solutions that reduce costs, improve quality, and ensure sustainability across the production chain is a key factor in attracting new investments in the sector, with freeze-drying technology and innovations in herb processing, juice concentrates, and date production among the areas ripe for investment.

Case in point: Last year, MAFI Agricultural Produce Industries inked contracts to set up a USD 300 mn agri-food industrial complex set to house five factories — the project raised USD 180 mn in long-term financing last month. There’s also Sullex, the cold chain developer that’s building an innovative project south of Giza, which will help cut down on food waste and change how food producers operate — we spoke with its founder and Chairman Andrew Daniel last year to learn more about the company and what it does. Check out the interview here.

Still, several roadblocks remain, including high costs, a lack of sufficient workforce training, and widespread informality in the sector. Food exporters are also among those facing lower export subsidies in the coming period, with the government announcing in November that food exports will receive subsidies of between 1.2% and 3% of the total value of exports depending on their added value.