Ukraine, Egypt agree steps to boost grain and sunflower oil trade

Arab News

6 days ago

Talks focused on strengthening food supply chains and expanding Ukraine's agricultural footprint in the Egyptian marketUkraine exported $776.5 million worth of goods to Egypt in the first half of 2025CAIRO: Egypt and Ukraine have agreed to take specific steps to boost trade in key farm commodities including grain and sunflower oil as Kyiv seeks to deepen ties with its largest trading partner in the Middle East and North Africa, the Ukrainian embassy said.An embassy statement on Wednesday did not elaborate on the steps or provide a timeline.The announcement came shortly after a meeting in Cairo between Ukrainian Ambassador Mykola Nahornyi and senior officials from the state grain buyer, the Future of Egypt for Sustainable Development.Talks focused on strengthening food supply chains and expanding Ukraine's agricultural footprint in the Egyptian market, the embassy statement said.Ukraine exported $776.5 million worth of goods to Egypt in the first half of 2025, primarily wheat, whose exports to Egypt reached 1.31 million metric tons. Corn exports to Egypt were at 1.06 million tons and soybeans were 360,000 tons, according to the embassy.Total bilateral trade during the period reached $947.9 million, it added.Egypt is often the world's largest wheat importer, relying on foreign supplies for both its subsidised bread program and private milling. Ukraine and Russia have both traditionally been the main source for Egypt's grain imports.But in the first half of this year, Egypt's wheat imports fell by more than 27 percent year-on-year to around 5.2 million metric tons, with the government's share of those imports plunging more than 57 percent to 1.5 million tons.Ukraine's embassy said the new measures aim to improve logistics and ensure more efficient, timely and transparent deliveries to Egypt.The Ukrainian Embassy and Future of Egypt both did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.