Drought

Agricultural leaders recommend Honduran smallholder farmers postpone planting until at least September due to a prolonged dry season and a forecast 40% rainfall deficit linked to a strong El Niño pattern, which threatens six drought-vulnerable departments.

An agricultural leader in Olancho expressed alarm over a severe drought threatening dry-season plantings and grain production, calling the current conditions unprecedented and warning of potential food-security risks.

A forestry engineer warns that El Niño arriving earlier than usual from June through September will reduce water supplies for drinking and power generation, harm planting of beans and corn, and increase wildfire risk across Honduras.

Honduras's weather agency warns that El Niño, confirmed by NOAA, could extend into early 2027 and cause a prolonged dry season with rainfall deficits exceeding 40% in parts of the country, threatening corn and bean production and food prices in vulnerable regions.

Honduras's atmospheric agency confirmed the onset of an extreme El Niño phase, potentially bringing prolonged drought, high temperatures, and water scarcity that could affect agriculture, livestock, hydroelectric power, and drinking water for millions of Hondurans over the next year.

The Vice Minister of Coffee said Honduras has sufficient supplies of beans and corn to meet domestic demand despite drought affecting several regions of the country.

Honduras's agricultural science agency is strengthening the genetic traits of corn, rice, and beans to improve their resilience to drought and climate-change impacts.

Agriculture Minister Moisés Molina says no cattle deaths have been reported from the ongoing drought affecting 75 municipalities, though he acknowledged that poor preparation and lack of feed—compounded by the dry spell—are causing animal losses in some areas.

Small-scale rancher Rolando Pastrana of Morolica, Choluteca, has lost six cattle to extreme heat and lack of water and feed, burning the carcasses to prevent contamination, as drought-stricken families in the area wait for rain with no government aid in sight.

Agriculture Minister Moisés Molina warned that Honduras faces a prolonged dry season exceeding two months due to El Niño, threatening grain production and food security, though the government has allocated 1.5 billion lempiras in production incentives and will provide technical support to farmers.

Honduras has mobilized a $70 million humanitarian assistance plan, coordinated with the UN and COPECO, to support roughly 800,000 people affected by drought across the country.

Honduras's emergency agency Copeco widened its drought alert from 60 to 75 municipalities across six departments, warning that El Niño conditions could extend dry spells for weeks and are already straining water supplies and threatening crops and livestock in the dry corridor.

Beef prices in Honduras have climbed 4 lempiras over two weeks due to livestock shortages caused by drought and reduced pastureland, with vendors absorbing much of the increase to hold retail prices at roughly 100 lempiras per pound (about $4).

Honduras's National Risk and Contingency Secretariat will analyze 75 municipalities in the Dry Corridor already under alert due to El Niño-linked low rainfall, evaluating whether to adjust or expand warnings as the critical rainy months approach.

Cattle are dying across a 75-municipality drought zone in southern Honduras as farmers and ranchers, who counted on rains in May, struggle without water or fodder and wait for government aid.

The government has placed 75 municipalities on green alert and 144 under observation, coordinating water distribution, food aid, agricultural support, and preventive health measures through SINAGER to protect communities from an approaching dry season.