787.8K tons of rice straw collected from 6 governorates: Agriculture Ministry

CAIRO – 24 September 2020: Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation issued its weekly report, citing that the country has collected and recycled 787,874 tons of rice straw.

This comes as part of a protocol between ministries of agriculture and environment aiming to curb pollution, and end the recurring phenomenon of Black Clouds that cover Egypt skies due to the burning of the excess rice straw and agriculture leftovers.

Collecting, pressing and recycling rice straw have proven to help farmers make money, create job opportunities for youths and reduce the negative impact on the environment.

The rice straw was collected from 418 sites in six governorates; 279 piles of compost were created to produce organic fertilizers and 1,031 tons of unconventional feed were produced in Kafr el-Sheikh governorate.

In a way to reduce Egypt’s main cause of air pollution, the Ministry of Environment is collecting rice straws nationwide for animal fodder and furniture manufacturing. Rice straws could also be used for the industry of paper, bricks, and furniture and for the production of biogas.

Minister of Environment Yasmine Fouad stated that 21 cases of burning agricultural waste were reported after being monitored by the latest technologies.

Egypt is known with what is called ‘the Black Cloud,” a thick layer of smog from burning rice straw that spreads across Cairo for an extended period of time.

Rice straw is being exported internally and it is hard to be exported outside due to the expected high cost of price, an importer told Egypt Today on Saturday.