Mohamed Abu Shady, Minister of Supply and Internal Trade, said Egypt’s stock of wheat is enough until 7 April 2014, refusing give further details on the quantities of stored wheat.
The minister said in a statement to Reuters: “I can say that the stock is sufficient until 7 April. We aim to keep reserves that cover demand for a period of no less than six months.”
The General Authority for Supply Commodities said, on Tuesday, that Egypt bought 120 thousand tons of Romanian and Russian wheat that would be shipped between 21 to 31 January 2014.
Egypt buys around 10 million tonnes of wheat a year from abroad through the state and private buyers. The state produces subsidised saucer-sized flat loaves of bread sold for less than 1 US cent to millions of Egyptians. The program costs 21 billion Egyptian pounds (US$3 billion) a year.
Edited translation from Reuters
