EGYPT—The Egyptian Swiss Group, a 100% family-owned company in Egypt, has been honored as a Gold Sponsor at the First Conference for Food Industry Exporters, organized by the Food Export Council (FEC) in Cairo.
This landmark event, attended by key stakeholders in Egypt’s food industry, featured the first participation of Hassan El-Khatib, Egypt’s Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade, underscoring the critical importance of the sector in driving Egypt’s economic growth.
In addition, the Milling, Pasta, and Concentrates maker was recognized among the largest exporting companies, celebrating its significant export growth over the past two years.
The conference provided a platform for industry leaders to discuss policies and procedures to boost exports further, in line with Egypt’s broader economic objectives.
El-Khatib highlighted the food industry’s contribution to the national economy, accounting for 14% of Egypt’s total exports.
The conference aimed to develop strategies to elevate food export growth, aligning with Egypt’s goals of increasing food industry exports by 15% annually through 2027.
The FEC has set ambitious targets to reach US$6 billion in exports by the end of 2024 and US$7.7 billion by 2027. Food industry exports already hit US$3.7 billion in the first seven months of 2024, a 23% increase compared to the same period in 2023.
Hani Barzi, Chairman of the FEC noted that 52% of Egypt’s food industry exports are directed to Arab nations, while 22% go to European Union countries, 7% to non-Arab African countries, and 5% to the Americas.
Top exported commodities include frozen strawberries, soft drink concentrates, flour, and animal feed, highlighting the diversity of Egypt’s food export portfolio.
The Egyptian Swiss Group’s active participation in these events underlines its commitment to expanding Egypt’s food exports and its strategic role in international food security discussions.
Egyptian Swiss Group at the BRICS 2024 Conference
Recently, in June, the Egyptian Swiss Group further solidified its international presence by participating in the BRICS 2024 meetings during the “Food Security and Sustainable Agricultural Development” conference, held in Moscow, Russia, from June 27-28.
The group was the only Egyptian industrial company present, joining an Egyptian delegation that included the Food Industries Chamber of the Federation of Egyptian Industries and the Chairman of the General Authority for Supply Commodities.
Hani Lawandy, Chairman of the Egyptian Swiss Group, emphasized that Egypt’s recent accession to the BRICS group will facilitate the flow of goods between member countries and secure strategic needs, such as wheat.
He pointed out the significant opportunities for Egypt to benefit from mutual cooperation, which could enhance export opportunities to BRICS countries and secure essential raw materials. This would be further strengthened by an agreement on using local currencies for trade, bypassing the US dollar.
Engineer Ahmed Al-Sebaey, General Manager of the Egyptian Swiss Group, noted that one key outcome of these meetings was the consensus on establishing a grain exchange for commodity trading among BRICS members.
This initiative, supported by Russian President Vladimir Putin, aims to enable direct transactions between buyers and producers, promoting food security and sustainable development.
During his speech at the 14th BRICS meeting, El-Sayed El-Quseir, Minister of Agriculture confirmed Egypt’s support for the Russian initiative to establish a grain trading alliance. He highlighted the BRICS countries’ vast economic capabilities and comparative advantages.
Russian Minister of Agriculture Oksana Lut reaffirmed her commitment to enhancing the flow of agricultural goods from Russia to Egypt and further boosting trade between the two countries, which exceeded US$3 billion in 2023.
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