Khaberni - The causes - challenges - solutions
The year 2025 witnessed, as it neared its end, an unprecedented state of chaos in the production in the agricultural sector of vegetables and fruits globally due to the impact of numerous agricultural, economic, and climatic factors. The imbalance between supply and demand, the absence of proper agricultural planning, and the fluctuations in the weather led to significant disruptions in the markets in many countries. This was evident through the sudden rise in prices at times, and then a rapid collapse at other times due to the large surplus, alongside the spoilage of significant quantities of crops due to poor storage.
In Jordan, the agricultural sector experienced what many countries did, with a clear fluctuation in the production of vegetables and fruits, reflecting on farmers, consumers, and the local market. Many farmers expanded the cultivation of certain crops based on individual estimates and inaccurate expectations, leading to the accumulation of large quantities of varieties like tomatoes, zucchini, cucumbers, among others, in contrast to a shortage of other crops needed by the market.
The unstable climatic conditions added to the challenges, as early heat waves and late frost caused confusion in the growth seasons and variability in the quantities and quality of production. In light of the rising costs of production inputs, farmers' losses increased. Thus, the Jordanian farmer found himself facing a difficult equation of continuously rising costs, suddenly falling sale prices, and surplus crops finding no way for disposal or processing.
The effects of the crisis did not stop at the farmers, but also reached consumers who experienced significant price fluctuations, and a decline in the quality of some varieties during periods of large production due to early picking or improper storage. With limited export channels and weak ability to regulate the flow of crops, there is an urgent need to reconsider the entire production system.
In short, agricultural production chaos means the absence of balance between what is produced in the fields and what the market needs, whether due to a large surplus leading to a collapse in prices, or a sharp shortage leading to price increases. This imbalance is largely due to weak database infrastructure and the absence of precise information about cultivated areas, actual production quantities, local consumption, and the quantities of exports and imports. It also arises from agricultural decisions often being made individually without being based on realistic scientific studies. Furthermore, a mixture of infrastructural factors deepens this crisis, notably the small size and dispersion of agricultural holdings, which makes organizing production and improving its efficiency difficult, and hinders farmers' ability to invest in modern technologies. Also, the absence of pre-arranged contracts between farmers and factories and exporters makes the marketing process subject to the daily mood of the market. The significant impact of climatic changes and limited water resources, in addition to weak food manufacturing that is still unable to absorb the production surplus in peak seasons, exacerbates the problem. These challenges are clearly visible in economic and social terms, including some farmers leaving the agriculture sector after accumulating losses and debts, reducing employment opportunities in rural areas, an increase in youth rejection of agricultural work, in addition to high crop waste after harvest, which ranges between 30-40% in some crops due to limited sorting, grading, and cooling centers.
From this point, it is necessary to work on establishing an integrated national system for agricultural production planning, which identifies the suitable crops for each region and regulates planting times based on local market needs and export capabilities. It is also necessary to work on establishing a national digital platform that provides accurate and updated data about production, consumption, weather, and pests, which helps in making agricultural decisions based on science and information. The situation also requires enhancing the concept of contractual agriculture and linking farmers with factories and exporters, in addition to developing supply chains and storage through establishing collection, sorting, cooling, and refrigerated transportation centers in areas that witness abundant agricultural production, whereby prices are linked to quality and specifications.
Given the local and regional conditions, supporting food manufacturing becomes a necessary step to reduce losses and absorb the surplus in high production seasons. The situation also requires reorganizing central markets through digitizing transactions, reducing the number of intermediaries, and enforcing price transparency. As for climate risks, it is essential to strengthen the role of the Agricultural Risk Fund and develop an early warning system that helps farmers deal with frost and heat waves and pests as much as possible to mitigate the effects thereof.
What happened this year from production chaos is a clear message for everyone on the necessity to restructure the agricultural sector to be more organized, flexible, and predictive. Food security will not be achieved merely by increasing production, but through organized, well-planned, and market-aligned production.
Conclusion
Agriculture is not just about production, but an interconnected system that requires a unified vision and clear policies. What happened from chaos in agricultural production not only hurt the farmer but also reflected on consumers, the markets, and food security. This requires radical solutions in managing agricultural production through adopting national planning based on data, developing supply and storage chains,enhancing food manufacturing, organizing central markets, and strengthening climate change mitigation tools. When production becomes more integrated with market needs and farmers possess the right information and marketing, Jordan can transition to a stable, capable agricultural sector, improving farmers' incomes and ensuring resource sustainability.
#Supporting Jordanian farmers is a national duty that surpasses all duties because it is the main arm of food security#
