Egypt's herb and aromatic plant exports reach $852m as it pushes more processing at home
Marjoram, mint, chamomile and hibiscus are grown on some 80,000 feddans. Ministers now want more of the value added in Egypt.
Cairo — Egypt exported about $852 million of medicinal and aromatic plants and related products in 2025, Agriculture Minister Alaa Farouk said on Saturday. That compares with around $400 million in previous years, although the ministry did not say which years.
He was speaking at the fifth Medicinal and Aromatic Plants Festival at the Agricultural Museum in Dokki, which has brought together more than 80 farmers, processors, exporters and investors.
The crops grow on about 80,000 feddans and include marjoram, basil, mint, anise, chamomile, fennel, coriander, hibiscus and jasmine. Around 85% of the output of some crops is exported as dried herbs.
Keeping more of the value
Farouk said the ministry wants to move beyond exporting raw produce by encouraging investment in drying, extraction, distillation and essential oils, and by improving traceability and certification.
Local Development Minister Manal Awad said a service centre for these crops is being developed in Samasta, Beni Suef, with the UN Development Programme and the European Union. It will offer sterilisation and processing units, residue testing, and farming and marketing advice.
Source: Daily News Egypt, 31 October 2026.
