Egypt targeted wheat cultivation area drops to 3.25 mln acres

CAIRO - 24 December 2017: Egypt, the world’s largest wheat buyer, is looking to plant 3.25 million acres of the crop this season, down from the previous government target of 3.5 million acres, the agriculture ministry spokesman said on Sunday.

Egypt’s wheat harvest typically runs from about April through July and cultivation is currently underway.

Last harvest the government procured about 3.4 million tonnes of wheat from its farmers.

Egypt has said it plans to purchase about 7 million tonnes of wheat from overseas to make up for the shortfall in the fiscal year that began in July.