30 June 2022
The recent shortage of vegetable oil in Egypt has escalated the food supply crisis in the North African country, with prices climbing since May 15.
According to the new price lists for edible oils announced by Arma Food Industries Company and the Savola Group, two of the largest edible oil companies in Egypt, prices on May 15 registered 9 Egyptian pounds (about 50 cents) for a bottle of less than a liter and 23 Egyptian pounds ($1.23) for a 2.2 liter bottle.
On June 1, the Egyptian Ministry of Supply and Internal Trade announced that nearly half a million Egyptians have so far been removed from the ration card system. The system subsidizes bread and vegetable oil. The move came in light of the lack of supplies to Egypt, which imports 90% of its needs of vegetable oil, according to Amr Madkour, the ministry’s adviser.
Speaking to Al-Monitor via phone, Madkour explained that the vegetable oil shortage in Egypt is due to several causes, most notably the lack of a global supply due to the outbreak of the Russian-Ukrainian war. “These two countries are among the major exporting countries of sunflower oil. Egypt would import huge quantities of this type of vegetable oil from them,” he noted.
Madkour pointed to the recent global supply chain crisis and the ensuing food crisis in tandem with weather fluctuations, droughts, climate change and high temperatures registered in a number of vegetable oil exporting countries.
Madkour added, “All these factors combined have led to a rise in oil prices globally, which is reflected in the rise in prices in Egypt. The government is doing everything in its power to alleviate the crisis by supervising wholesalers and retailers to limit the exploitation of the crisis and exaggerated price hikes. In parallel, the state is seeking to conclude deals to import crude oil from several countries, most notably Malaysia, Indonesia and perhaps Argentina.”
In turn, a well-informed source at the Ministry of Planning and Economic Development told Al-Monitor that four state companies in Egypt produce vegetable oil, but they provide only 2% of the domestic needs of a country the size of Egypt with a population of more than 103 million people.
