• Egypt moves to increase fish exports to Italy after EU import ban was lifted in 2024.
• Talks focus on sanitary standards, inspections and export approvals.
• Italy accounted for 38% of Egypt’s EU fish exports before the 2021 suspension.

Egypt is seeking to increase its fish exports to the Italian market following a meeting on February 15 between Tarek El-Houby, head of the National Food Safety Authority (NFSA), and representatives of the Italian Embassy in Cairo and the Italian Trade Agency.

Discussions centered on aligning sanitary standards, modernizing inspection systems and simplifying approval procedures for export facilities.

Both sides stressed the importance of strengthening technical coordination, exchanging information on sanitary and regulatory requirements, facilitating the approval of establishments and ensuring compliant Egyptian seafood products gain better access to the Italian market, according to a statement from the NFSA.

The renewed engagement comes as Cairo works to rebuild its seafood exports to the European Union. The EU suspended fish imports from Egypt in 2021 after the European Commission identified compliance issues during an inspection. Egypt regained authorization to resume exports to the bloc in 2024.

Trade Map data show that in 2019, Egypt exported nearly $13 million worth of fish to the EU, with 38% destined for Italy, its largest European market at the time. The challenge now will be to recover market share lost to competing suppliers.

In 2024, the EU imported nearly $48.1 billion in seafood products, representing about one-third of global imports in the category, according to Trade Map. In the same year, Egypt’s total fish exports to international markets reached $68.7 million.

Stéphanas Assocle