- Title: EGYPT-WHEAT HARVEST Egyptian farmers face difficulty during wheat harvest season
- Date: 4th May 2015
- Summary: SHARQIYA, EGYPT (APRIL 28, 2015) (REUTERS) WHEAT FIELD / FARMERS HARVESTING WHEAT WHEAT BEING HARVESTED FARMER LEADING DONKEY PULLING CART CARRYING WHEAT VARIOUS OF WHEAT HARVESTING (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) FARMER, GASEM HASSAN, SAYING: "We have the machine which we use to harvest. In two or three days we will wrap it up. Then we will bring the tractor to flatten it out, gathe
- Embargoed: 19th May 2015 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Egypt
- Country: Egypt
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVADG7J8JTZQ1D79MWRYQTQARLOR
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Wheat harvest season has begun and in the Egyptian city of Sharqiya, farmers gather the essential crop that remains problematic to plant.
Wheat is vital to the Egyptian population where bread, for many, constitutes the main part of daily nutrition. Consequently the Egyptian government's energy subsidy cuts in 2014 did not affect bread subsidies, a politically sensitive issue.
The process of harvesting the wheat is a delicate one that consists of monitoring moisture levels, gathering the crop using machinery as well as wrapping and flattening it. The process takes 5-7 months and the harvesting starts when the seeds ripen.
Gassem Hassan is a farmer who harvests wheat.
"We have the machine which we use to harvest. In two or three days we will wrap it up. Then we will bring the tractor to flatten it out, gather it, cut it and then we fill it with water to ferment it," he said.
Egypt, the world's largest wheat importer, loses an estimated 1.6 million tonnes of wheat a year worth around $500 million because of inadequate storage.
The government said that they would buy 3.7 million tonnes of wheat from local farmers in the coming season -- the same volume it purchased last season while also announcing that new silos will be built to ensure the storage capacity is sufficient.
However, farmers in Sharqiya have been complaining about the level of governmental service, such as farming units responsible for dispensing chemical additives to the land; the provision of farming engineers and guidance on how to efficiently grow the crop.
One farmer, Fawzy Mohamed, said that the services provided by authorities are insufficient and that the crop - which requires proper soil preparation and seed placement - is lacking the much needed attentive services from authorities.
"When it comes to the crops this year, the yield is heavy. Also the service is unhelpful. To bring three uric fertilizer bags and give it to the farmer the service is unhelpful," Fawzy told Reuters.
"Nowadays one does not have fertilizer anymore. The amount of fertilizer used is not enough to achieve the proper yield. If we were to follow the proper farming procedures, there has to be engineers that follow up with the farmer and provide good service while also speaking to the authorities that the acres need a specific amount of fertilizer, services and certain timings. Instead the authorities are asleep and the farmer just plants anything. It doesn't matter anymore," he continued.
With lack of sufficient agricultural land and storage facilities, wheat production in Egypt is stuck at 8 million tonnes with almost 2 million tonnes lost each year causing a surge in prices and a shortage in supply.
According to the state run newspaper Al Ahram, Egypt needs over 9 million tonnes of wheat to supply the population each year.
For generations, Egypt's government has fed the public by distributing subsidised flour to bakeries, which sell bread for as little as 5 piastres a loaf, less than one U.S. cent.
The system has turned Egypt into the world's biggest importer of wheat, draining the government's foreign currency reserves: Cairo spends $3 billion a year on imports for it.
A new "smart card" system to distribute subsidised bread has been a major achievement for Egypt's government; saving money while earning praise from families who no longer have to wake early to fight for loaves.
Under the new system plastic cards are issued to families which allow them to buy five loaves per family member per day.
Previously, Egyptians had to queue for hours to buy the subsidised bread while bakeries were supplied a fixed amount of cheap flour.
With the current reform, Egypt is expected to increase storage capacity from 1.5 million tons to 5 million tonnes by the end of 2015. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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