Browse Data and Analysis

The Caribbean Basin region continues to experience growth, driven primarily by the steady rise in tourism, which in turn impacts consumer demand.

Romania continues to be a growing market for U.S. food and agriculture exports. Romania’s total resident population was just over 19 million people as of early 2024, representing a marginal decrease from the previous year, with about 48 percent still living in rural areas.

Despite recent economic headwinds, Egypt’s food ingredient market is experiencing modest growth driven by increasing demand for processed and packaged foods.

According to Romania’s National Institute of Statistics (NIS), Romania imported $184 million of U.S. food and agricultural products in 2024. According to the U.S. Census Bureau (USCB), U.S. suppliers shipped $68 million worth of food and agricultural products to Romania in 2024.

FAS Cairo (Post) forecasts Egyptian sugar production in marketing year (MY) 2025/26 (October-September) to rise to 3.18 million metric tons (MMT). This increase is driven by industrial demand and higher prices for sugar beets, incentivizing many farmers to plant more beets.

FAS/Cairo (Post) forecasts Egypt’s soybean imports in marketing year (MY) 2025/26 (October – September) to increase by 5.0 percent from the previous marketing driven by a flexible exchange rate, the availability of forex and a more positive outlook for the livestock sectors.

While small local grocers dominate the Egyptian retail market, representing more than 50 percent of sales by value, convenience and price will continue to drive the majority of Egyptian consumer buying decisions, presenting growth opportunities across all retail channels.

This report highlights the food processing industry, its drivers, key players, and market landscape in the Caribbean Basin. The region relies heavily on imports, and the United States is the largest supplier of food ingredients.

Post forecasts Egypt’s MY 2025/26 cotton production at 320,000 bales, down 25 percent from the previous season due to a significant decrease in area harvested.

Egypt’s wheat imports for marketing year 2025/26 are estimated at 13.0 million metric tons, unchanged from Post’s estimate in the previous marketing year which was revised upward by 4 percent due to the availability of forex contributing to an increase in imports.

On March 12, 2025, the Government of Egypt (GoE) filed a ninth addendum to the World Trade Organization (WTO) Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) – G/TBT/N/EGY/313/Add.9 – informing interested parties that it was excluding imports of milk and dairy products from the scope of its Halal certification requirements.

Egypt is the leading aquaculture producer in Africa, producing approximately two MMT of fish annually. Aquaculture accounts for roughly 80 percent of Egypt’s fish production, primarily via private farms.