Irish dairy exports to Egypt top €59million, focusing on strong Egyptian dairy demand

New figures released from Ireland reveal that in 2020 Irish dairy exports to Egypt rose by 22% to €59 million, from €48million in 2019. The annual Performance and Prospects report for the Irish food and drink industry for 2020 shows that Ireland is the largest supplier of cheddar cheese to Egypt with cheese accounting for half of total exports. Butter, Fat Filled and Skimmed Milk Powder comprised the rest.  

Figures just released show that the total value of Irish dairy exports to Africa for 2020 is €658m[1], comprising cheese and whole and skim milk for North Africa. In response to a demand for dairy products, Egypt has witnessed a 47% growth in total dairy imports over the past 10 years (for dairy ingredients this includes 500% growth in Fat Filled Milk Powder and 230% growth in infant formula), of which Ireland has been a key supplier.

Egypt and Ireland share an understanding that security of food supply is key to future growth and success. In 2019 food exports from Egypt topped $3.5bn, representing 14% of all non-petroleum exports. Pivotal to this story was that in the same year Egypt became the world’s top supplier[2] of oranges, and the second largest supplier of oranges to the EU, with 211k tons of oranges exported. Despite the global downturn and trading volatility as a result of the pandemic, the first nine months of 2020 showed the value of Egyptian food industry exports to increase by 2%.

Similarly, despite the many challenges on the domestic and international front last year, Ireland’s food and drink exports for 2020 reached €13bn, with a marginal dip of 2% on 2019, as a result of the towering pandemic challenges faced including the closure of foodservice, increases in shipping costs, and dramatic consumer behaviour changes.

Last year the Irish government and Bord Bia travelled to Egypt on an agri-food trade mission, with a focus on developing long-standing trade relationships between the Irish dairy industry and targeted Egyptian dairy processors and food manufacturers. It was also aiming to build awareness of Ireland as a supplier of high-quality, sustainably produced dairy among potential Egyptian customers.

Osama ElTanbouli, General Manager from Arab cultivators ElTanbouli and co., one of the leading Egyptian repacking milk powder companies, said:

“Tanbouli is always looking to import instant milk powder products with the highest quality and at competitive prices. Ireland is one of the biggest suppliers in Europe and for that reason we choose Irish products, particularly the fat filled milk powder, because of its high quality and excellent taste.

We’ve repacked this product in several weights under our brand name to meet all requirements from the different sectors - modern trade, traditional and catering sectors. Although this product is new to the Egyptian market, it has earned the trust from all sectors that use it.”

Sittin Group is a key dairy distributor in Egypt, and owner of dairy brand Mainz, which uses Irish cheddar. Ibrahim Sittin, Managing Director at Sittin Group said:

“Irish cheddar cheese is an integral part of our production at Mainz. Mainz launched the first 360 campaign to raise awareness of its use of natural Irish cheddar in 2020. Communicating this message on TV, outdoor and digital advertising helped establish awareness for the brand and for our use of Irish products. This is just the first step in order to deliver Irish quality cheese to every Egyptian household.”

Egypt is a sophisticated market for dairy with one of the highest dairy consumptions in Africa, at 98 litres per capita. By 2030 Egypt will have an estimated population of some 112 million people and a requirement for over 230,000mt of dairy ingredient products.

Bord Bia’s Africa manager, Nicolas Ranninger, said:

“Egypt, like Ireland, is a strong exporting nation. The Egyptian food sector is a vibrant industry investing massively to produce high quality products while the Egyptian authorities implement strict international standards in food production and processing. These combined efforts are driving the Egyptian food industry to success both in its home market but also internationally, and in particular in the MEA region.”

He said that the specific demand for Irish dairy in Egypt has doubled in value over the last five years, driven by demand for cheese which accounts for two thirds of this trade.

He added:

“The Irish food and drink industry is a solutions-driven industry and the latest export figures of €59 million to Egypt is testament to Ireland’s reputation as a safe, trustworthy and sustainable supplier of dairy to Egypt.

Ireland is a reliable and sustainable source of supply for the Egyptian industry where Origin green and the grass feeding system guarantee high quality dairy products.

Despite the COVID-19 crisis with production and logistics challenges, our industry has been resilient and committed to supply the Egyptian market with our best quality products through 2020 and will remain a privileged partner for the Egyptian industry”.

Bord Bia will be strengthening business exchanges in 2021 by organising some privileged B2B discussion platforms such as hosting dairy ingredient forum in Egypt.

-Ends- 

About Egypt dairy imports

Egypt has witnessed a 47% growth in total dairy imports over the past 10 years (for dairy ingredients this includes 500% growth in Fat Filled Milk Powder (FFMP) to 12,000 tonnes and 230% growth in infant formula to 51,000 tonnes). Total dairy imports are expected to reach 230,000 metric tonnes by 2024. 

In total in 2020 there was a 3% uplift in the value of international dairy exports from Ireland, to €5.2bn. 

About Ireland

Ireland is an agricultural nation with a rich heritage in dairy production. As an island nation with a population of five million people, Ireland produces enough food to feed 25 million people.

In Ireland farming and food production is the number one indigenous industry. The Irish dairy sector has a rich co-operative heritage, with the establishment of a co-operative led dairy system throughout Ireland in the late nineteenth century. A long history of family owned farms combined with lush green fields, fresh clean air and plentiful rain has created the perfect environment for dairy farming, converting grass into nutrient-rich, premium quality dairy products and ingredients. Today, the Irish dairy sector is still predominately farmer owned and controlled in Ireland.

Bord Bia (The Irish Food Board) is the Irish government agency charged with the promotion, trade development and marketing of the Irish food, drink and horticulture industry.  Bord Bia works to enhance the reputation of  Irish food, drink and horticulture, to develop markets for Irish suppliers and bring the taste of Irish food to more tables world-wide. With its headquarters in Dublin, Bord Bia has a network of 15 overseas offices, including one in Africa in Nigeria. This extensive overseas presence, coupled with authoritative strategic insight, enables Bord Bia to pursue emerging opportunities and actively respond to significant market issues that affect the industry. In 2012, Bord Bia launched Origin Green, a national sustainability plan for our entire food and drink industry. It was also the first in the world to operate on a truly national level.

Origin Green essentially commits Irish producers and processors to reducing their carbon footprint and to using less energy and resources in food production. It does so by placing rigorous environmental targets on each individual business, and well over 90% of Ireland’s food and drink exports are now Origin Green certified.

The dairy industry has been central to this story, and some of the most exciting progress Bord Bia has made in Origin Green has been directly connected to this sector.

© Press Release 2021