From land destruction to exhausting farms.. Gaza loses its food basket

A report reviews the collapse of the agricultural sector in Gaza after the war, where more than 90% of agricultural lands have gone out of service, and annual production has dropped from 450,000 tons to less than 30,000 tons. Farmers face rising production costs, lack of supplies, and difficulty accessing their lands, threatening food security and the livelihoods of thousands of families.

A report from the newspaper "Palestine" paints a grim picture of the agricultural sector in Gaza after nearly three years of war. The report opens with the story of farmer Abu Rami al-Tabban (65 years old), who was forced to stop cultivating his five-dunum land due to rising production costs for pesticides, nylon, and water, making the operation economically unfeasible. Engineer Nizar al-Wahidi, former Director General of Planning at the Ministry of Agriculture in Gaza, warns of the continued collapse, noting that more than 90% of agricultural lands have gone out of service, and annual production has dropped from about 450,000 tons before the war to less than 30,000 tons currently. Economic specialist Mahmoud al-Aff confirms that the decline in local production threatens food security and increases the dependence of more than two million citizens on aid, warning that any halt in aid flow could lead to famine. He stresses that the entry of goods does not compensate for the loss of local production, and that recovery requires a comprehensive development program including rubble removal, soil rehabilitation, and water networks. The report is based on an assessment by FAO and UNOSAT as of June 24, 2026, showing that only 448 hectares of agricultural land are available and intact, i.e., 3% of the total, a decrease of 25.5% from October 2025. Rafah tops the most affected areas, with 97.2% of lands inaccessible. Majed Shahin, an official in the Agricultural Emergency Committee, affirms that agricultural recovery is an investment in food security and the resilience of the Palestinian people, not just a relief response.