Egypt: Fresh Farm Export Target Tops 10 Million Tonnes in 2026, With Potatoes the Second-Largest Item

Egypt aims to ship more than 10 million tonnes of fresh agricultural produce by the end of 2026, up from roughly 4 million tonnes in 2014, Mohamed Ali Fahim, head of the Climate Change Information Center at the Ministry of Agriculture, said in comments carried by FreshPlaza on 15 October. Within that total, potatoes stand as the country’s second-largest fresh export item at about 1 million tonnes a year, behind citrus at approximately 2 million tonnes. Sweet potatoes account for around 600,000 tonnes and grapes for 200,000.

The export basket is broad: around 420 farm products reach 170 countries across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Combined fresh and processed agricultural exports generate about US$11 billion and now make up 25–27% of Egypt’s non-oil merchandise exports, against some 7% before 2014, Fahim noted. Access to foreign markets, he said, lets growers cover cultivation costs while balancing domestic supply and crop prices — and he stressed the need to protect the quality reputation of Egyptian produce abroad.

The pace into the fourth quarter supports the ambition. Egypt exported about 190,000 tonnes of food products in 4,333 consignments between 3 and 9 October, the State Information Service reported on 11 October, citing the National Food Safety Authority. Shipments went to 163 countries, with Saudi Arabia and Sudan the leading destinations. Vegetables accounted for 51,000 tonnes of the weekly total, led by sweet potatoes at around 16,000 tonnes, onions at 13,000 tonnes and beans at about 10,000 tonnes; fruit added 30,000 tonnes.

For the potato trade, the roughly 1-million-tonne figure keeps Egyptian ware potatoes firmly anchored in off-season supply to Europe, the Middle East and Africa. It also frames the domestic season now starting: export lots must come from registered pest-free areas and pass laboratory screening for quarantine diseases such as brown rot before shipment, so inspection volumes will build as winter-crop lots move toward the ports.

What to watch through the fourth quarter: the National Food Safety Authority’s weekly export prints against the 10-million-tonne target, and how large a share potatoes take of vegetable shipments once winter-crop exports gather speed.

Sources: FreshPlaza, 15 October 2026 (comments by Mohamed Ali Fahim, Ministry of Agriculture) · Egypt State Information Service, 11 October 2026, citing the National Food Safety Authority.