Iraq News

Syria food production at record low: UN

A farming crisis in Syria has reduced food production to a record low and raised fears people in the country will be forced to flee famine, AFP reported Tuesday (November 15th).

"Widespread insecurity and unfavourable weather conditions" in parts of the country continue to "hamper access to land, farming supplies and markets", the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) said in a report it produced with UN's World Food Programme (WFP).

The FAO warned of "grave consequences not only for the food security of farming households but also on food availability", which "may ultimately lead to further displacements".

Ongoing fighting is making it difficult for many farmers to access grazing land and water sources, while the price of animal feed has sky-rocketed, forcing "many herding families... to sell or slaughter their sheep, goats and poultry", the report said.

Rising prices and scarcity of fertilisers and seeds also is hurting crop farmers, who "will have no other option than to abandon food production if they do not receive immediate support".

Wheat production has plummeted 55%, and a water crisis has led some farmers to switch to hardier but less nutritious crops, the report said.

Once an exporter of livestock, Syria has seen its herds and flocks shrink since the beginning of the crisis, the report said, noting that "there are 30% fewer cattle, 40% fewer sheep and goats, and a staggering 60% less poultry".

"Many farmers have lost the ability to cope," the report said, adding that almost 80% of households across Syria were already struggling to access or buy food and the situation was likely to worsen.

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