Egypt has received 120,000 tonnes of sugar imported from Brazil and France, Egyptian Minister of Supply Mohamed Ali El-Sheikh announced Wednesday. El-Sheikh said that 85,000 tonnes arrived at Port Alexandria and 35,000 arrived at Port Damietta, adding that distribution of the shipment has begun throughout the country. El-Sheikh said the shipment is being distributed nationwide according to the need of each governorate at a commercial retail price of 10.5 Egyptian pounds per kg. The price of the subsidized sugar set by the ministry is 7 pounds per kg. The government has been taking measures in recent weeks to overcome shortages in the supply of the basic commodity and combat price hikes in the market. El-Sheikh also said that 1,200,000 tonnes of locally grown sugar cane have been delivered to six sugar factors in Upper Egypt since the start of harvest season. He added that 120,000 tonnes of this sugar has been processed and is ready to be offered on the market. He added that production will increase after two new sugar factories become operational. Egypt's sugar production reached 2.2 million tonnes in 2016, around 900,000 tonnes less than that consumed domestically, the agriculture ministry said in June. Source: Ahram Online
