The Fish Products Division of the Chamber of Food Industries held its regular meeting, headed by Professor Hani Al-Minshawy, to discuss and present the export file to the markets of the European Union countries and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

The meeting also discussed opportunities to replace imports, reduce the import bill, regulate exports in the fish sector, present the most important obstacles facing fish exporters with the regulatory authorities, and discuss ways of cooperation with the “TAIB” Food Control and Inspection Systems Support Project, funded by the US Department of Agriculture.

At the beginning of the meeting, the head of the division revealed an expected visit by a delegation from the European Union to Egyptian fish factories to approve their free-caught products for export, explaining that the Chamber of Food Industries, in cooperation with the National Food Safety Authority, is fully prepared for this visit and is preparing a program for about 20 fish factories to identify their needs and provide technical support for them in various central fish production areas in Port Said, Alexandria, and Suez.

He added that the Chamber of Food Industries, in cooperation with the National Food Safety Authority, will work during this period to review the strengths and weaknesses of these factories, risk analysis programs, and prepare specialized training courses for fish manufacturers regarding accelerating their accession to the European Union’s export white list, as well as qualifying them for export to the Saudi Arabian market, announcing an upcoming visit from the National Food Safety Authority and Saudi Food and Drug Administration to approve Egyptian factories for export.

He also confirmed that the Division is conducting negotiations with the National Food Safety Authority regarding the export of farmed fish and the possibility of negotiating its introduction into the European market, after carrying out all necessary analysis that fulfill the requirements regarding the fish trading and tracking system through cooperation between water bodies and the National Food Safety Authority to provide all reports and information about type of feed, water, etc.
He proceeded to point out that Egypt ranks fourth in the world in fish farming and first in Africa, with a productivity estimated at about 2.3 million tons, indicating that the expected productivity will increase to 3 million tons, as 35 thousand tons are exported while 506 thousand tons of fish are imported.

Towards the end of the meeting, Professor Hani Al-Minshawy explained that exports of processed fish amounted to 450 million euros in 2020 and are expected to increase by 15% after the resumption of exports to the European Union, noting that production from capture fisheries does not exceed 20%, compared to 80% for fish farming.