Egypt Targets Wheat Production Growth Through Unprecedented Agricultural Expansion

Egypt is implementing an ambitious plan for both horizontal and vertical agricultural expansion aimed at boosting food security and increasing local production, particularly of strategic crops such as wheat, Minister of Agriculture Alaa Farouk said.

The minister explained that horizontal expansion includes major national projects, most notably the New Delta project, covering 2.2 million feddans, the Sunbulat Sono project spanning around 450,000 feddans, and agricultural expansions in Sinai exceeding 500,000 feddans. Additional development is underway in North Oweinat and the Toshka extension, covering more than 300,000 feddans.

Farouk said the total land currently being reclaimed and developed exceeds 3.5 million feddans under the umbrella of the “Future of Egypt” project, describing these initiatives as vital opportunities to raise domestic output and strengthen agricultural exports.

He noted that the government aims to achieve self-sufficiency in wheat used for subsidized bread by increasing local wheat production to between 10.5 and 11 million tons during the current season.

Egypt’s annual wheat consumption stands at approximately 18.5 million tons, while domestic production reached about 9.5 million tons last year, the minister said. He added that authorities are targeting the procurement of around 5 million tons of locally produced wheat this year, compared to 4 million tons last year.

Farouk emphasized that these efforts are designed to reduce Egypt’s import gap not only in wheat, but also in corn and animal feed, through coordinated work between the Ministry of Agriculture, the Future of Egypt authority, national institutions, and the private sector.