Many Egyptians have added the absence of sugar to a growing list of complaints against President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, but the government has tried to shift the blame, accusing local factories and profiteering traders of hoarding stocks to increase prices.

Authorities raided Edita Food Industries, one of Egypt's largest food producers, over the weekend, seizing some 2,000 tons of sugar stocks. The company has denied hoarding stocks of sugar and has said that the move may force its production to stop altogether.

"If it's (the confiscation) going to continue, the rest of the company will stop," Edita's Chairman Hani Berzi told Reuters, also saying that foreign investors are "very concerned."