The Agriculture Export Council (AEC), in cooperation with the General Organisation for International Exhibitions and Fairs (GOIEF), and the Export Development Authority, will organise the Egyptian pavilion at the Fruit Logistica exhibition, scheduled for 7-9 February 2018. This year's exhibition will witness the participation of 99 Egyptian companies. Abdel Hamid Al-Demerdash, chairperson of the AEC, said that Fruit Logistica is one of the largest exhibitions specialised in fresh produce trade. Held on an area of 25,000 sqm, last year's edition of the exhibition received about 76,000 visitors from 130 countries, of which 82.2% came from outside Germany. Egypt's pavilion will be held on an area of 1,700 sqm, where the 99 Egyptian companies will show their vegetable and fruit products to customers. Egyptian agricultural exports came to 3.8m tonnes, worth $2.2bn, during the last export season of 2016/2017. The AEC seeks to increase the growth rates of agricultural exports through entering new markets. It also works in cooperation with the concerned authorities on setting new rules for agricultural exportation based on the coding and registration of farms that export their production. Fresh fruits topped Egypt's agricultural exports, worth $1.1bn, in the 2016/2017 season, where citrus exports had the largest share, followed by exports of grapes, pomegranates, and strawberries. Exports of fresh vegetables came in second place, recording about $657m, topped by exports of onions, potatoes, green beans, and tomatoes, in order of greatest exports.
