Vegetable crops to
grow four percent

Seven-fold surge in avocado yield but drop in cereals and potatoes

Vegetable production is forecast to grow four percent to 868,500 tons in 2024 compared to the average of the 2020/2023 crisis years, according to a report published jointly by the two United Nations agencies Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and World Food Program (WFP).

“Compared to the pre-crisis level, the area cultivated [by vegetables] has decreased but this has been largely offset by an increase in productivity, linked to more optimal use of agrochemicals,” FAO and WFP said in their Crop and Food Security Assessment report.

Crops of staple food (cereals, potatoes, and pulses) are expected to substantially drop mainly driven by the war, adverse weather conditions, and lack of regulations in the seed sector. Cereal production (wheat, barley, maize/sorghum) is forecast to decrease to 119,400 tons in 2024, down 38 percent compared to the average of the crisis years and 21 percent below the 2015/2019 pre-crisis average.

Production of potatoes is projected to fall to 610,700 tons, down eight percent compared to the crisis era and two percent below pre-crisis levels.

Production of fruits and nuts is expected to remain basically the same at 867,000 tons compared to the crisis years but 20 percent below the pre-crisis average. Avocado production is forecast to surge almost seven times compared to pre-crisis levels and reach 136,500 tons. The 2024 avocado harvest is likely to exceed the double of the crisis average. The avocado-planted areas have significantly expanded over the last four years, driven by lucrative prices and robust export opportunities.

Labor shortages resulting from the displacement of a large number of people could significantly reduce harvests of olives and grapes in regions directly affected by the fighting and may also decrease areas sown by wheat, barley, and vegetables which will have a negative impact on production in 2025. Nearly 20 percent of the country’s cropland is located in the governorates of South and Nabatieh.

Livestock production (milk, meat, and eggs) could grow in 2024 thanks to the implementation of a vast vaccination campaign in 2023 and an increase in animal feed imports in 2024. But the country’s livestock production is mainly concentrated in Baalbeck-Hermel (cattle 31 percent, sheep 33 percent, and goats 17 percent) and to a lesser extent in the South and Nabatieh governorates (cattle 14 percent, sheep 13 percent, and goats 23 percent).