Browse Honduras Daily Stories

An estimated 80% of Honduran farmers operate outside the formal economy, leaving them unable to access regulated credit and forcing many to rely on informal lenders at unfavorable rates, a business leader says.

Rice producers warn the 2026 harvest could fall to just 150,000–160,000 quintals (about 6,800–7,300 metric tons), down from 446,000 in 2025, due to lack of price supports and competition from imports, leaving farmers unable to finance seeds and inputs.

Rice growers in Colón say mechanized land remains unseeded due to lack of financing, crop insurance, and guaranteed prices, threatening to reduce output below 2026 targets.

Honduras is hosting the 68th annual meeting of the Central American cooperative program for crop and livestock improvement in Tela from September 28 to October 2, bringing together over 150 research projects aimed at boosting food production amid climate challenges.

Fosdeh researcher Jorge Henríquez warns that sustained inflation is forcing Honduran families to reduce food intake and nutrition, shift to cheaper staples, and take out loans to cover basic monthly expenses.

Food prices across Honduras's basic basket are climbing due to fuel costs and weather damage, threatening families' ability to afford traditional holiday meals in December, warns a food-security researcher at UNAH.

An audit of the Agricultural Marketing Institute's grain reserves in La Lima found pest damage in corn and hardening in beans that render part of the stockpile unsafe for human consumption, though officials say they are replenishing strategic reserves with 60,000 additional quintals (about 2,700 metric tons) purchased from local producers.

Honduras's National Congress and the World Food Programme finalized a technical cooperation agreement to address severe drought affecting over 100 municipalities, targeting immediate food aid and longer-term irrigation and agricultural infrastructure.

Mayors from Lempira municipalities reported 100% crop losses from ongoing drought and traveled to Tegucigalpa seeking government relief, while the national farm federation warned Honduras should be declared in emergency.

Agriculture Minister Moisés Molina says Honduras faces no food shortage and markets are adequately stocked despite recent weather damage, with new harvests expected from mid-September onward.

Agriculture Minister Moisés Molina ruled out a famine despite what he called the worst drought on record hitting 75 municipalities, saying Honduras has sufficient food stocks and future grain contracts, even as local mayors report total crop losses and hundreds of cattle deaths.

Adverse weather and crop failures in Piraera, Lempira are forcing agricultural families to sell livestock to cover basic needs, prompting the mayor to call on the government for rural support.

The Agriculture Ministry unveiled a 10-year strategy investing $40 million annually to expand irrigation on 60,000 hectares, strengthen school meals for 300,000 children, and boost local farm production amid an El Niño drought affecting 134,000 families across 234 municipalities.

The Agriculture Ministry projects rice production of 700,000 quintals (about 31,500 metric tons) in the near term, a 40% increase from 2025's roughly 500,000 quintals, as part of a strategy to reduce dependence on imports that currently supply over five million of the six million quintals Honduras consumes annually.

A labor-union leader warns that 2.5 million Hondurans lack adequate food despite reported macroeconomic growth, arguing low wages and weak job prospects drive mass migration and leave the country competing with Haiti on poverty measures.

The agricultural marketing institute reports Honduras holds 120,000 quintals (about 5,400 metric tons) of beans and 76,000 quintals (about 3,400 metric tons) of corn in strategic reserves, with new harvests expected in 20 days and a 25% discount on basic grains coming through state-run stores.

To ease drought-driven price pressure, the government is releasing 120,000 quintals (about 5,400 metric tons) of beans from state reserves at L18 per pound (about $0.72) through Banasupro, with a 25-pound limit per person.

Christian Duarte, a former Finance Ministry official, linked budget cuts by the Asfura administration to a food crisis affecting 1.8 million Hondurans, citing reductions in agricultural programs, forestry protection, farm credit, and water infrastructure.

Honduras's Finance Ministry is releasing over 1.1 billion lempiras (about $44 million) in advance municipal transfers to 75 drought-affected towns to fund emergency food security and aid to families hit hardest by the extended dry season.

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization called on Central American countries to strengthen strategic grain reserves to protect food security during the expected 2026–2027 El Niño, which forecasters say will bring reduced rainfall, more frequent droughts, and crop damage across the region.

Congressman Hugo Noé Pino of the Libre party warned that the El Niño drought's damage to food production will push inflation above 5% in the second half of 2026, and called for contingency plans to protect food security in hardest-hit regions.

The agricultural marketing institute reports Honduras holds 120,000 quintals (about 5,400 metric tons) of beans in reserve and rules out imports for now, citing adequate stocks and new harvests expected within 45 days from multiple regions despite ongoing dry conditions.

The government announced imports of beans from Brazil, Nicaragua, and Paraguay to prevent shortages affecting 1.7 million people facing food insecurity, but an agricultural anthropologist warns the strategy undermines local farmers and discourages domestic production.

Anthropologist Mario Ardón argues that Honduras should invest in 10–30 year agricultural policy leveraging the country's diverse microclimates and hillside farming, rather than importing beans and grains, to address food insecurity affecting roughly 1.7 million Hondurans.

The Agricultural Marketing Institute director said a legal investigation into bean supplies is nearing conclusion, with the government holding about 100,000 quintals (roughly 4,500 metric tons) in reserve to prevent shortages and expects authorization within days to proceed with sales.

A year-long drought has reduced agricultural supply and driven up prices for everyday produce, with the basic food basket rising 6.16% (about 800 lempiras / $30) since June 2025, and the food-security observatory warning that 2.8 million Hondurans could face food insecurity by year-end.

Honduras's basic food basket jumped 800 lempiras (about $32) in a year, a 6.16% increase driven by higher meat and fruit costs, while drought affecting 75 municipalities threatens to push 2.8 million Hondurans into food insecurity by year's end.

Agriculture Minister Moisés Molina announced that Honduras will import 100,000 quintals (about 4,500 metric tons) of beans from Nicaragua, Paraguay, and Brazil to offset a drought-driven 40% drop in domestic production and stabilize prices for a staple of the Honduran diet.

The government said strategic bean reserves held by the agricultural marketing institute exceed storage targets by 10–15%, ensuring adequate supply despite drought, and has identified potential import suppliers as a backup plan.

Honduran farmers are preparing to sell approximately 600,000 quintals (about 27,000 metric tons) of red beans from the first harvest cycle, which officials say has been delayed by late rains and variable weather.