A promising future for the manufacture of spaghetti pasta in the Egyptian market

Mamdouh: 1.7 kg of pasta per capita per year in Egypt, compared to 25 kg in Italy

Ezzat: promising opportunities for exports in the markets of Africa and East Asia

Experts in the manufacture and export of pasta in the Egyptian market agreed that there are great opportunities for investment in the sector, especially spaghetti, which accounts for only 17% of the total domestic production, against a great demand for it in the local and export markets.

Mohamed Mamdouh, Head of Export Sector at SILO Group, said that the pasta product is one of the new commodities in the Egyptian market, as the majority of people's consumption of carbohydrates is summed up in rice and bread only, while pasta began to gain the attention of a large segment of citizens starting from 2004.

He pointed out that the pasta industry sector witnessed significant growth during the years 2007 and 2008, and the Egyptian market currently includes more than 17 pasta manufacturing companies, where the volume of consumption of the local market is about 700,000 tonnes, of which 450,000 tonnes are in specific packaging brackets, such as 400 or 500 grams, while the other percentage of consumption is in bulk.

He added that the average annual consumption of pasta per person in Egypt is about 1.7 kg compared to other countries such as Tunisia, where the per capita consumption reaches 17 kg annually. Italy is the most consuming in the world, with an average of 25 kg per person annually.

He said that there are studies and statistics related to the pasta industry in Egypt and investment and export opportunities, explaining that the pasta industry is divided into spaghetti and chopped pasta, where spaghetti accounts for 17% of the local market consumption, unlike exports, where spaghetti controls 83% of Egyptian exports and the remaining percentage goes to other types.

He said that the local market suffers from a shortage of spaghetti at the beginning of the season, affected by exports. On the other hand, the market is saturated with the production of chopped pasta, and it achieves a surplus, so this sector does not need new investments.

He added that any new company that invests in the manufacture of pasta tends to manufacture spaghetti, especially in light of the shortage of this type in addition to the opportunities to export to the African market with competitive advantages for the Egyptian product in those markets.

Mamdouh explained that the four largest pasta importing countries from Egypt include Kenya, Madagascar, Zimbabwe, and Mozambique, in addition to Egypt's border neighbours such as Libya.

Alaa Ezzat, Chairman of the Egyptian Emirates Company, said that the demand for pasta is increasing at present locally and abroad due to the scarcity of water resources globally. Pasta is the alternative to rice, as wheat cultivation accounts for 20% of the amount of water needed by rice cultivation.

He pointed out that the local production of pasta is sufficient for consumption, while imported quantities are very small, representing a percentage of no more than 1% due to the presence of consumer demand.

He said that imports from Turkey and the UAE have fallen, while imports from Italy reached only a single container, following a long period in which Italian pasta denominated the market until 2014.

Moreover, he said that the African markets have been some of the top importers of Egyptian pasta. However, the current status will change in the long run as the pasta industry spreads there to meet demand.

On the other hand, he said that East Asian markets along with China and Japan are amongst the top destinations for Egyptian pasta, as the cold climate renders these nations unable to localize the pasta industry that requires a warm climate.

He said that the rise in wheat prices led to a major state of stagnation and export halted because foreign markets did not accept price increases, as the price increased by $150 per tonne.

He stressed that the rise in the price of wheat will lead to a rise in prices again, but if the situation remains stable, this will lead to price stability and will be followed by a decline.

He said that Egyptian companies have a good opportunity to export due to the current government support for companies, as well as the low price of international freight.