Egypt's strawberry production model is resilient to rising costs

The general increase in strawberry production costs worldwide will strengthen the position of Egyptian growers, although production costs have doubled in Egypt too. This is according to Emad Mahdy, owner of Al Fayruz Nurseries, who recently embarked on the adventure of duplicating the Egyptian model in strawberry production in other countries.

Egypt resilient in the face of rising costs
According to Emad, "The cost of strawberry production in Egypt has risen considerably since last year. We needed 5000-7000 dollars to produce one Feddan (0.42 Ha) of strawberries. This year, the typical production budget is 13 thousand dollars. The increase in cost started with global inflation and is exacerbated by the devaluation of the Egyptian pound since many inputs are imported."

"However, Egypt remains among the countries with the lowest cost of strawberry production in the world," continues Emad. "We benefit from a highly trained and available workforce and low-cost energy. Each of these budgets represents 25% of the total production budget, and both are sourced locally and paid for in Egyptian pounds, thus escaping the fluctuation of foreign currencies. We also benefit from abundant, low-cost land and water, thanks to the wide desert and the Nile."