Egyptian authorities confiscate sugar at country's largest food producer

Egyptian authorities seized sugar stocks at Edita Food Industries, one of the country's largest food producers, on Saturday, a move that may force the company to suspend its operations, Edita's chairman told Reuters.

At supermarkets across the country sugar has all but vanished, prompting media talk of a crisis and pushing the state to rapidly increase imports despite an acute dollar shortage and soaring global prices of the sweetener.

The government has blamed the crisis on local factories and profiteering traders hoarding stocks to push up price.

A supply ministry official told Reuters that 2,000 tonnes of sugar stocks were confiscated after Edita was unable to show original invoices for quantities held at its Beni Suef factory.

Edita, which holds local ownership of international brands Twinkies, HoHos and Tiger Tail in Egypt, Libya, Jordan and Palestine, denied it had hoarded sugar.