GIEWS Country Brief: Tunisia March 2025 – Overview of Food Security Trends
The Food Security Snapshot indicates positive trends in Tunisia’s cereal production for 2025 due to abundant rainfall. Cereal production in 2024 saw significant recovery, with lower import needs projected. Food inflation has also decreased markedly, contributing to improved food security conditions.
The Food Security Snapshot for Tunisia highlights several positive trends for 2025. Abundant rainfall in January has significantly enhanced the conditions for cereal crops. The winter cereal planting season, which began under dry conditions in late 2024, benefitted from improved soil moisture due to this rainfall, potentially leading to above-average yields if the favorable weather continues into the spring.
In 2024, Tunisia’s cereal production is estimated at approximately 1.5 million tonnes, showing a remarkable recovery from the drought-affected output of 2023, although it remains about 6 percent below the five-year average. The northern and central regions experienced favorable weather from December 2023 to April 2024, which helped improve crop growth despite initial planting delays.
The forecast for cereal import requirements in the 2024/25 marketing year stands at a below-average level of approximately 3.5 million tonnes. Wheat, constituting over half of these imports, is predicted at around 2 million tonnes, slightly above the average, largely due to the abundant wheat harvest from 2024.
Food inflation has seen a significant reduction throughout 2024, registering about 7 percent in February 2025 compared to the previous year, down from 16 percent in May 2023. Increases in prices for bovine meat, fish, and poultry have driven the overall rise in food costs, while prices for oil have notably decreased by about 16.2 percent.
In conclusion, Tunisia’s food security outlook for 2025 appears optimistic with improved rainfall benefiting cereal crops, a substantial recovery in cereal production, below-average import requirements, and easing food inflation. These developments highlight the resilience of Tunisia’s agricultural sector and its potential for recovery following challenging conditions in prior years.
Original Source: reliefweb.int
