June 16, 2015
In December last year, Egypt's supplies ministry signed a US$28 million contract with Blumberg Grain, a company which specialises in food storage systems in emerging markets.
The deal paved the way for the modernisation of 93 local wheat storage sites, with US$200 million expected to be saved upon completion of the first phase of a new food security system, said David Blumberg, the chief executive of Blumberg.
The involvement of sophisticated technology "will allow for screening, drying, cleaning, grading and bagging of wheat", a statement from Blumberg and the supplies ministry stated. Hence, the yearly processing capacity could reach 3.7 million tonnes, in addition to 750,000 tonnes of static storage capacity.
105 open-air storage pits will be fitted with state-of-the-art warehousing systems during the initial phase. For one modernised unit, post-harvest losses could be reduced to less than 5%, compared to a previous 40%.
Another 207 open-air pits will be included in the second phase of modernisation.