Gaza's Agricultural Crisis: How Destroyed Farmland Created a Starvation Crisis
Gaza agricultural collapse Farmland destruction Forced famine Gaza food crisis Agricultural destruction Food security crisis Gaza starvation Man-made crisis Humanitarian aid Vegetable packs Al Ihsan Foundation Gaza relief Food systems collapse Agricultural crisis

Gaza's Agricultural Crisis: How Destroyed Farmland Created a Starvation Crisis

Over 80% of Gaza's farmland destroyed. Livestock, trees, and food systems have been severely damaged, forcing over 1.9 million people into extreme hunger. Learn what caused the man-made crisis and how you can help.

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Key Takeaways

  • Understanding the scale of agricultural destruction in Gaza
  • How destroyed farmland leads to forced starvation
  • The numbers behind Gaza's food security crisis
  • What remains of Gaza's agricultural capacity
  • How your support can provide immediate relief

Gaza's Agricultural Crisis: How Destroyed Farmland Created a Starvation Crisis

What Happens When 80% of Farmland is Destroyed? This isn't just a food shortage, it's forced starvation. In Gaza, families aren't just hungry. They've lost orchards, wells, greenhouses, everything they once grew food with. Only limited farmland remains cultivatable. What do you feed your child when nothing grows anymore?

This Is Not Just Hunger. This Is Forced Starvation.

In Rafah, a father stands on the dry, broken earth of what used to be his tomato farm. "I didn't just lose tomatoes," he says. "I lost the only way I knew how to feed my family." Over nineteen months into the siege, Gaza's food system has collapsed. Families are starving because their cropland, wells, livestock, and access to aid have been deliberately and systematically destroyed by the occupying forces.

Gaza's Starvation Crisis by the Numbers

According to the UN's latest food security report (IPC, July 2025), every single person in Gaza is now facing crisis-level hunger or worse:

Food Security Crisis Levels

22%
Phase 5: Catastrophe

470,000 people at risk of starvation

54%
Phase 4: Emergency

Over 1 million people in emergency

24%
Phase 3: Crisis

500,000 people in crisis

These are families, children, elders and babies

Cropland: What's Left to Farm?

Before the siege, agriculture supported over 560,000 people through farming, herding, or fishing. Today, that lifeline is nearly gone.

Gaza's Farmland Status (FAO/UNOSAT, April 2025)

80%
Destroyed Farmland

Completely unusable for agriculture

10%
Remaining Farmland

Undamaged and accessible

Why Gaza Can't Feed Itself

Food availability has been deliberately cut off:

Systematic Destruction of Food Systems

Since 2 March 2025, aid and commercial supplies have been blocked
Livestock, fisheries, and orchards have been targeted
Only 10% of cropland remains undamaged and accessible

Most of Gaza's food supply has been deliberately destroyed.

What You Can Do: Send a Vegetable Pack

One $75 vegetable pack can feed a family with:

Essential Vegetables for Survival

Tomatoes

Full of vitamin C and lycopene for immunity

Cucumbers

Hydrating, mineral-rich, gentle on digestion

Zucchini

Packed with folate for mothers & children

Eggplant

High in fibre, antioxidants, and plant protein

Molokhia

Gaza's supergreen: rich in iron

These vegetables are a means of survival.

Our teams in Gaza are sourcing what can be found and delivering fresh vegetables directly to families. Read how it's happening.

Final Reflection: Hope Grows When the Ummah Responds

Forced starvation is a weapon, and it's being used against Gaza's people. But hope still grows when the ummah responds. When we give, we push back against despair. We restore dignity. And we remind every person in Gaza that they have not been forgotten.

Send food. Send relief. Send dignity.

Because every vegetable pack is a lifeline for a family in Gaza.

Gaza's Agricultural Collapse | How Farmland Destruction Led to Forced Famine - Alihsan.org.au Blog