The Egyptian government is considering introducing new regulations to control the prices of various food items in the market. This includes granting a three-month exemption from customs tax for imported goods, which will cover products such as medicines, frozen poultry, dairy, butter, sugar, pastries, oils, and tea.
In addition to this measure, the government has also launched an initiative to reduce the prices of essential commodities like beans, dairy products, white cheese, mixed oil, pasta, sugar, lentils, poultry products, eggs and rice. To achieve this goal, the government plans to streamline customs clearance at ports and ease financial burdens on manufacturers and merchants.
Frozen meat from cattle, sheep and goats as well as poultry meat will also be granted customs exemptions. In response to rising fish prices in several Egyptian governorates have successfully launched boycott campaigns that have led to a significant decrease in prices. For example Port Said Chamber of Commerce reported a 50%-70% drop in fish prices due to a boycott campaign against popular fish dishes like chub fish which decreased from 250 pounds per kilo to 100 pounds per kilo. The boycott will continue until prices normalize following recent fluctuations.
