Despite the Taliban's ban: poppies return to Afghanistan's fields

Despite the Taliban's ban on poppy cultivation four years ago, growing areas in Afghanistan have increased more than fourfold within a year, from about 100,000 dunams in 2025 to about 433,000 dunams this year, according to a UN report. Farmers report economic distress and malnutrition.

Four years after the Taliban banned poppy cultivation in Afghanistan, the plant is gradually returning to the fields. According to a new report by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, growing areas have increased more than fourfold within a year – from about 100,000 dunams in 2025 to about 433,000 dunams this year. The ban, imposed in April 2022, was intended to reduce opium production in the country but left many families without a source of income. Farmers in Balkh province report malnutrition among their children and income 60% lower than what they earned from poppies. The UN warns that ten provinces have recorded critical levels of malnutrition. Opium sales reached about $525 million this year. The Taliban rejects the UN assessments and claims the extent of cultivation is about half. Farmers hide the plants among grain fields to evade inspectors.