The following questions about the project by Eg for Agriculture were submitted by the bettervest crowd and answered by Ahmed Awad, CEO and founder of Eg for Agriculture:

1. Ahmed Awad, as an experienced entrepreneur, can you briefly introduce yourself and explain what motivated you to establish EG for Agriculture?

I’m a serial entrepreneur with a strong belief in building scalable businesses rooted in local value creation. I founded EG for Agriculture to turn a neglected natural asset — Egypt’s date palm ecosystem — into a model for sustainable agriculture, high-impact exports, and climate resilience. Our farm is both a commercial enterprise and a regenerative case study.  

2. What does “sustainable farming” mean in your project, specifically?

Sustainability and working with nature are core values in everything we do. We are committed to practices that create a positive, long-term impact on the ecosystem and its people — ensuring climate resilience and food security for generations to come.  

We start by selecting climate-appropriate crops, like date palms, that thrive in arid environments without straining natural resources. This is supported by methods such as:  

• Organic farming with no harmful chemical inputs
• Agroforestry and polyculture to promote biodiversity and soil health
• Drip irrigation to reduce water waste by up to 60%
• Utilizing solar energy to lower our carbon footprint
• Tree planting for long-term carbon sequestration

3. Why did you choose to cultivate date palms in a monoculture, and how do you assess the sustainability of this model compared to mixed cultivation?

We are not a monoculture farm. While medjoul is our main crop and revenue driver, our farm was designed as a polyculture from day one, applying agroforestry principles that promote the best use of the land.   

Our farm’s planting mix includes indigenous plants that are native to this region, as well as plant species that have been adapted to semi-arid regions and have grown here for centuries. Medjoul is the main date varietal, but we also have 2,000 palms of other experimental varietals. We have also planted casuarina trees around the perimeter of our farm as a natural fence – currently 27,000 planted, and we’re expected to double that figure with Phase 2 planting. They act as a protective windbreaker to the rest of the farm’s growing plants, and as a natural nitrogen fixer in the soil. We also have 3,000 mahogany trees with herbs/spices planted underneath in earlier years to promote soil health, biodiversity, and ecosystem balance. With that said, our current growth phase is built around scaling our medjoul as a central component of our business model because of its market value and climate sustainability, supported by our collaboration with bettervest.  

4. How do you manage potential risks such as pests?

We start with close and frequent monitoring and several preventative techniques — such as protective netting and biodiversity buffers — to avoid pest problems from the outset.  

If intervention is needed, we rely on:  

• Biological controls (beneficial insects, natural predators)
• Organic treatments like neem oil and microbial sprays
• Companion planting and healthy soil management
• Ongoing training and oversight from our organic certification bodies, who regularly audit our practices and ensure the team is equipped to handle pest threats in line with international best practices

Our approach aligns with our broader ecological values — protecting both yield and long-term soil and ecosystem health.  

5. Why is Egypt a strategically attractive and stable location for this project?

Egypt offers a rare combination of competitive advantages for a date-based agribusiness:  

• It is the #1 producer of dates worldwide at 1.7 million tons annually, yet is still under-penetrated in export markets (representing just 2–3% of global trade), with an estimated 800,000 tons of dates going to waste annually.  
• Its desert climate is ideal for growing date palms, which are native to this region: dry air, high sun, and dramatic day/night temperature shifts.
• Favorable unit economics and scalability potential – an overabundance of local supply of dates positions the company well to offer manufactured / date-derived products at scale while leveraging a naturally abundant and underutilized resource with a relatively lower cost structure.  
• It has excellent geostrategic positioning, with access to major export markets via the Suez Canal, strong port infrastructure, and robust free trade agreements with the EU and others. Specifically with the EU, which is an important market of focus for the company, reduced tariffs allow us to be competitively positioned with EUbased clients, and increasing quotas of agri-food products opens sales channels for us.  
• Egypt is also an increasingly attractive investment destination, especially for agriculture and F&B projects. There’s growing government support for sustainable farming and agri-food manufacturing, and development banks have shown strong interest in funding these sectors — all signs of a promising ecosystem for long-term agri-investment.  

6. How does the water supply work in the desert, and how do you ensure availability during dry periods?

Our farm taps into the Nubian Sandstone Aquifer, one of the largest and most stable fossil water reserves in the world — accessible from only a few places on Earth, including the Bahariya Oasis where we are located.   

We’ve designed the project to make sustainable and efficient use of this precious resource:  

• The choice of date palms, which have one of the lowest water requirements among fruit trees. Other species in our planting mix are also native to desert ecosystems and therefore can thrive with lower water requirements.  
• Precise irrigation scheduling (dawn/dusk) to avoid evaporation  
• Drip irrigation systems that reduce water waste by up to 60% as compared to other irrigation methods
• Regular monitoring and planning based on national usage guidelines

Our water usage is not only low-impact but aligned with the local ecology of an oasis. We’ve even extended access to our wells to help neighboring communities — contributing to regional development. Our water usage model, crop selection, and irrigation infrastructure are designed to preserve this resource for generations to come.  

7. With rising temperatures, how resilient are date palms?

Extremely resilient. Date palms are native to this environment and have thrived here long before modern irrigation. They require little water, withstand extreme temperatures, and have even been highlighted in climate research as a tool to fight climate change, and specifically, combating desertification and further loss of fertile land by creating green buffer zones.   

8. Does your date production negatively affect the local water supply, or how do you balance the project’s needs with those of the surrounding communities?

On the contrary — our project adds value to an underutilized natural resource. This region is historically underdeveloped and hasn’t had the means to use modern methods to unlock the aquifer’s value.   

Our farm uses water responsibly, cultivates native crops, and shares water access with local communities. By combining low-impact farming with infrastructure investment, we not only preserve the water source, but help the region benefit from it sustainably.  

9. How does your business model ensure profitability given that date palms take years to bear fruit?

Our farm already crossed the critical non-productive stage, and that’s what makes the timing of this investment a very unique opportunity and entry point for new investors:  

• Phase 1 trees are now 6–7 years old and producing fruit. A palm’s peak yield is an average of 60–80 kg/tree starting around year 8–10, so investors joining now are joining at the height of the production curve.  
• Phase 2 trees begin fruit harvest in year 3, but they also generate early revenues from palm offspring, a unique trait of Medjool palms.

Our business model ensures consistent revenue and profitability through:   

• Harvest and offspring sales from Phase 1 trees
• Palm offspring from Phase 2 trees (our nursery is already active to support this).  
• Third-party sourcing from our partner farms, allows us to scale our processing output and achieve commercial volumes / sales, even while waiting for new trees to mature.  

In other words, our model has layered cash flows — from mature trees, nurseries, and supply partnerships — designed to balance short-term income with long-term growth.  

The investment risks associated with the subordinated loan are described in detail in the Basisinformationsblatt. The measures taken to reduce these risks are outlined in this section: 

To incorporate risk mitigation measures despite the subordinated loan structure, a special purpose vehicle named Afrika Emissions 8 UG (haftungsbeschränkt) was established in Germany for the crowdfunding campaign on bettervest. This entity acts as the borrower in the project. It forwards the raised capital to the project owner in Egypt, The Egyptian International Company for Trade and Distribution (EG for Agriculture), as a secured loan. Shareholders and management of Afrika Emissions 8 UG (haftungsbeschränkt) are independent from The Egyptian International Company for Trade and Distribution (EG for Agriculture). 

Corporate Guarantee: 

In the event of a payment default by The Egyptian International Company for Trade and Distribution, the holding company in formation, Ancient Grove Inc., guarantees the repayment of the loan. 

 Liquidity Buffer: 

In addition, Afrika Emissions 8 UG (haftungsbeschränkt) will be equipped with a liquidity buffer of EUR 25,000 (also raised through the crowdfunding campaign) to enable it to intervene in the event of repayment difficulties on the part of the local partner, The Egyptian International Company for Trade and Distribution, or to initiate legal action if necessary. 

Pledging of Assets and Contracts: 

All assets and contracts financed through this loan will be pledged in favor of Afrika Emissions 8 UG (haftungsbeschränkt). Should The Egyptian International Company for Trade and Distribution fail to repay the loan, these pledged assets may be seized and liquidated. 

The total project has a financing target of 2,275,650 EUR (including bettervest fees). This amount will be raised in individual tranches, with this tranche having a funding target of 1,500,000 EUR. 

The loan will finance the establishment of a modern processing facility, the expansion of the date farm’s infrastructure, and the working capital necessary to fulfill export contracts. 

The loan term is 3 years. 

The funding threshold for this project is EUR 50,000. 

If the funding target of 1,500,000 EUR is not reached, the project owner will still use the investor funds to finance its business operations and invest to a lesser extent in the aforementioned fixed assets. 

Interest 

Crowd investors will receive an annual interest rate of up to 7.5% on the loan amount. Interest payments are made quarterly in arrears, with the first payment due three months after the start of the regular interest period and the final payment at the end of the term. The amount of each interest payment may vary as it is adjusted to the seasonal fluctuations of the project owner’s revenues. A detailed overview of the planned payments is provided in the interest and repayment schedule attached to the subordinated loan agreement. 

Repayment 

Repayment will be made in quarterly installments, with the first installment due 15 months after the start of the regular interest period and the final installment at maturity. The amount of each quarterly installment may vary and is detailed in the interest and repayment schedule attached to the subordinated loan agreement. 

The loan will be repaid from the funds generated by EG for Agriculture through increased revenues, improved margins, and income from export contracts in the course of its business operations.