Egypt raises bread subsidy budget as wheat imports slow after early buying surge
Egypt allocated 133.8 billion pounds for bread subsidies in fiscal 2026/2027, up 9.8 billion pounds from the previous year. June wheat imports fell to a record monthly low of 405,000 tonnes after heavy early-year purchases and the arrival of the domestic crop.
Subsidy spending rises despite narrower ration rolls
Egypt has increased its bread subsidy allocation even as the government removes ineligible recipients from the ration-card system and wheat imports slow sharply. The 2026/2027 budget, which took effect in July, assigns about 133.8 billion Egyptian pounds to bread subsidies, according to Al-Masry Al-Youm. That compares with about 124 billion pounds in 2025/2026, an increase of approximately 9.8 billion pounds.
The higher allocation follows the removal of about 1 million people deemed ineligible for subsidized bread and food commodities since the previous month. Total food-commodity subsidies are budgeted at about 178.3 billion pounds, up from roughly 160 billion pounds in 2025/2026 and 134.15 billion pounds in 2024/2025. The figures indicate that reducing beneficiary numbers has not yet translated into a lower nominal subsidy bill.
June imports fall after front-loaded purchases
Egypt imported only about 405,000 tonnes of wheat in June, the lowest monthly volume on record, official data cited by Al-Masry Al-Youm showed. The decline followed unusually heavy buying during the first five months of 2026. Imports reached 6.956 million tonnes by the end of May and 7.361 million tonnes between January and June 29, compared with 4.755 million tonnes in the corresponding 2025 period. The year-on-year increase was about 2.61 million tonnes, or 55%.
Sources cited by the publication said June's decline reflected a shift in purchasing schedules rather than weaker underlying demand. Regional tensions had encouraged Egypt to bring purchases forward and secure future requirements. Imports during the first five months were about 70% higher than a year earlier, creating stocks that reduced the need for large June contracts.
The slowdown also coincided with the peak of the domestic procurement season. By mid-June, the government had collected about 94% of its 5 million-tonne domestic procurement target, according to the latest Ministry of Agriculture figures cited in the report. The current budget provides about 69.1 billion pounds to finance domestic wheat purchases after the procurement price was raised to 2,500 pounds per ardeb. A further 67 billion pounds is allocated to imported wheat.
Russia and Ukraine expand deliveries
Russia remained Egypt's largest wheat supplier, shipping about 4.141 million tonnes during the first half of 2026, up from 2.849 million tonnes in the same period of 2025. The increase was approximately 1.29 million tonnes, or 45%. Ukraine raised deliveries to 1.801 million tonnes from 1.307 million tonnes, an increase of about 494,000 tonnes, or 38%.
Amr El-Hiny, former head of the mills division at the Federation of Egyptian Industries' grain chamber, told Al-Masry Al-Youm that Egypt was unlikely to achieve wheat self-sufficiency and that imports would continue regardless of monthly fluctuations. He said yields range from 1.5 to 2 tonnes per feddan and argued that the wheat, flour, bread and subsidy system requires tighter oversight. By contrast, Hisham Abu El-Dahab, a former member of the grain division, said reducing the number of ration-card beneficiaries could eventually lower wheat imports and flour production by bringing subsidized consumption under greater control.
