Despite government hopes to cut its $4.5 billion food import bill, food subsidies that make bread available to Egyptians at less than one U.S. cent per loaf are driving more demand for wheat. Egypt is already the world’s biggest importer of wheat, importing 10 million tonnes annually and producing another 7 million on its own, but production constraints mean imports will need to rise. At the same time that Egyptian growers are being pushed to grow more food meet increasing demand, declining water resources and urban sprawl hamper efforts. Solutions to this challenge are limited, as wheat yields in Egypt are already among the world’s highest and growing urban populations and a lack of adequate water restricts increased land allocation.
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