Ezz El-Din Gadallah Al-Abbasi, Director of the central laboratory for research and development of date at Agricultural ministry attends an interview with Reuters in Cairo, Egypt November 1, 2022. Egypt one of the largest producing countries of dates with a production of 1.8 million tonnes annually, but exports only around 40,000-50,000 tonnes because of logistical challenges. REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh