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WHAT WE DO
Farming:
A few facts about Egypt
- Surface area of the country: 1’001’449 km²
- Population: ~80 mio (of which 3.9 mio living abroad)
- Inhabited area: ~38’000 km² (Nile valley & delta, few scattered coastal areas and oases = 4% of total country’s surface area), [Switzerland: 41’284 km² (total)]
- Population density (relative to inhabited area): 2’105 inh./km² [Netherlands: 464 inh./km² (total)]
- Birth rate: 25%
- Death rate: 6%
- Population growth: 1 mio/~8 months
- Proportion of population below 15 years of age: 35%
- Rural population: 57.4%
- Illiteracy: 65%
- Agricultural sector share of workforce: 35% (i.e. 7 mio farmers)
- Share of the total population depending on Agrofood sector: 35 mio
- Agrofood share of GDP: 18%
Bitter Orange Blossoms
The roots of A. Fakhry & Co.’s agricultural activity date back to the early days of the XIXth century when the family’s estate was primarily growing cotton and feed crops. In 1955, Ahmed M. Fakhry (4th generation), founder of A. Fakhry & Co., redirected farming activities towards aromatic botanicals to supply the newly established industrial facilities with the necessary raw materials to produce essential oils and the likes.
In 1997, his son, Hussein A. Fakhry, took charge of the activities, consolidated them, and diversified the farming activities to become exclusively organic so as to meet (EC) 834/2007, USDA-NOP (in 2002), DEMETER (BioDynamic), and JAS compliant standards. Today, Hussein and wife Chérifa have brought A. Fakhry & Co.’s farming to integrate – additionally to its own properties – a 50+ year old conventional network of partner farms which grow aromatic botanicals, as well as a 10 year old certified organic farming network, spreading over all of Egypt. Altogether the company provides livelihood to a 5’000 Ha network of small farmers.
The company continuously develops new partnerships with local populations in remote areas (e.g. Sinaï peninsula, Siwa oasis, Western Desert oases, Nubia, and the Red Sea coast) to promote a sustainable type of agriculture which it believes is paramount to a sound development of Egypt’s agricultural future against the jeopardizing effects of a rampant demography (cf. figures above.)
The unique case of Egypt – undoubtedly the oldest nation in the world – and its 12’000 year old agriculture experience provides an outstanding backdrop to A. Fakhry & Co.’s activities today that are in direct connection with the country’s millennia old indulgence with aromatics.