Lebanon's agriculture and food supply under threat

Key Concepts

• Acute Food Insecurity: A state where a population's inability to consume adequate food puts their lives or livelihoods in immediate danger.
• White Phosphorus: A highly incendiary chemical substance used in munitions that causes severe burns and environmental contamination.
• Glyphosate: A broad-spectrum herbicide used here to destroy agricultural crops and orchards.
• Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs): People forced to flee their homes due to conflict but who remain within their country's borders.
• Ecological Cycle Disruption: The long-term damage to natural resources, water infrastructure, and soil health that prevents agricultural recovery.

---

The Humanitarian Crisis in Lebanon

Chef Aline Kamakian, representing World Central Kitchen (WCK), reports that Lebanon is facing a rapidly deteriorating food security crisis. The United Nations World Food Program estimates that 1.24 million people—a quarter of the population—are currently facing acute hunger.

• Economic Impact: Lebanon is heavily dependent on imports. Due to the escalation of hostilities, food prices have surged by 40–50%.
• Operational Challenges: WCK operates 12 kitchens across the country, providing thousands of hot, protein-rich meals daily. However, many other NGOs have been forced to cease operations due to the danger, leaving the displaced population almost entirely dependent on the remaining aid groups.
• Sustainability: While WCK continues to meet its commitments, Kamakian describes the situation as a "chronic crisis" that will lead to a catastrophic outcome if the conflict persists.

Agricultural Devastation and Long-term Outlook

The conflict has caused irreparable damage to Lebanon’s agricultural sector, which is vital for the country's food sovereignty.

• Scale of Destruction: Approximately 20% of arable land has been destroyed. The South and the Bekaa Valley, which account for 65% of Lebanon’s agricultural production, have been severely impacted.
• Environmental Warfare: The use of white phosphorus and glyphosate has contaminated nearly one-third of agricultural land in these regions with heavy metals and explosives.
• Loss of Heritage: Over 50,000 olive trees, many centuries old, have been deliberately destroyed.
• Infrastructure Collapse: The destruction of water networks has broken the ecological cycle, ensuring that even if the war were to end immediately, the country would suffer from food production deficits for generations.

Security and Civilian Impact

Kamakian highlights the extreme danger faced by civilians and aid workers, noting that the conflict is characterized by deliberate attacks on non-military targets.

• The April 8th Massacre: Kamakian describes a series of simultaneous, unannounced strikes on densely populated areas of Beirut. She characterizes these as "deliberate attacks on civilians," noting that strikes hit supermarkets and residential buildings, resulting in over 350 deaths, primarily women and children.
• Aid Worker Vulnerability: The safety of humanitarian staff is a primary concern. Kamakian references the April 2024 incident in Gaza where seven WCK workers were killed despite coordinating their movements with military authorities. She notes that this pattern of targeting—including attacks on journalists and the Red Cross—creates an environment of constant fear.

Key Perspectives and Quotes

• On the nature of the conflict: Kamakian emphasizes that the war is not a series of "targeted operations" but a "deliberate attack on humans."
• On the long-term consequences: "The damage will last for generations to come."
• On the reality of the war: "Everybody is concerned about the prices of the petroleum... we are suffering here from direct bombs, direct shelling. This is the ugly part of the war, but nobody's talking about it."

---

Synthesis

The situation in Lebanon is a multi-layered catastrophe. The immediate humanitarian need for food aid is being met by organizations like WCK, but this is a stopgap measure against a backdrop of systemic destruction. The deliberate targeting of agricultural infrastructure—specifically the contamination of soil and the destruction of ancient orchards—ensures that Lebanon’s food insecurity will be a long-term, chronic issue. Furthermore, the disregard for civilian safety and the targeting of aid workers have created an environment where humanitarian relief is both essential and increasingly perilous.