Lebanese farmers cautiously hopeful as four-year Saudi export ban may end

After four years of devastating ban, Lebanese farmers are becoming hopeful as Saudi Arabia signals a willingness to reopen its doors to their produce.

The reopening, driven by Lebanon's success in curbing drug smuggling through agricultural shipments, represents a lifeline for rural communities that have haemorrhaged income and hope, according to the sector's officials and farmers.

"The Saudi market was the most important and largest destination for Lebanese agricultural exports," Mohammad Al-Solh, foreign relations secretary of the General Union of Agricultural Syndicates, said to The New Arab.

"Opening it means increased demand for Lebanese production, higher prices compared to the local market, selling harvests without losing them, and hard currency entering the hands of farmers and exporters. In other words, the return of the main artery that most farmers have lived on for years," he added.

In April 2021, Saudi Arabia announced a widespread ban on imports of fruits and vegetables from Lebanon, blaming an increase in drug smuggling.

The decision came after Saudi customs authorities at Jeddah had foiled an attempt to smuggle in more than 5.3 million Captagon pills, a type of amphetamine, hidden in pomegranate shipments from Lebanon, said Mohammed bin Ali al-Naim, undersecretary for security affairs at Saudi Customs, according to Saudi Arabia's SPA news agency.

Cautious welcome, urgent demands

Before 2021, the Saudi kingdom imported approximately 60,000 tons of Lebanese produce annually, part of a broader Gulf relationship that accounted for 45% of all Lebanese agricultural exports. That trade was worth roughly $32 million per year to Saudi Arabia alone, and contributed to a historical bilateral trade balance of $700 million, according to the Lebanese agriculture ministry.

Total agricultural exports to all Gulf countries plummeted to just 77,000 tons—a 62% collapse from pre-ban levels. The economic toll was devastating: farmers watched as crops rotted in storage. Local prices collapsed as producers flooded the market with surplus they couldn't sell. Debt spiralled. Young men abandoned farming villages entirely, migrating to Libya or elsewhere in search of income.

"Stopping exports led to the collapse of prices for some crops locally," al-Solh explained. "Demand for production declined, and large quantities became stagnant. Storage costs rose, and portions of harvests were lost. Some farmers left the market entirely or reduced production. In short: direct losses and deprivation of the most important foreign market."

Ibrahim Tarshishi, head of the Beka'a Farmers and Agricultural Cultivators Association, was more blunt.

He revealed that "Lebanon had been exporting more than 550,000 tons of agricultural products abroad, but when Saudi Arabia and Gulf countries closed their borders and blocked land routes, exports declined to only 200,000 tons, a significant drop for farmers, especially since Saudi Arabia is the primary destination for importing Lebanese agricultural products."

When a Saudi official recently told Reuters that the kingdom intended to discuss "removing obstacles" to Lebanese agricultural exports, it triggered relief that security efforts had worked. Still, they remained anxious about whether promises would translate into action.

"Talk of lifting the ban is very positive for farmers, merchants, and Lebanon in general," Tarshishi told TNA. "But what's most important is implementing the decision quickly and allowing the export of accumulated Lebanese crops in the market—especially citrus of all types, plus Lebanese grapes, which were exported in large quantities to Gulf countries in general and Saudi Arabia in particular."

The urgency is literal. Winter is approaching, and the planting and export season waits for no one.

"Usually, when winter ends, merchants begin exporting, and there is sufficient time for export activity to resume," Tarshishi noted. "This would be very positive economically and morally, after illegal people controlled crops and exports against the wishes of farmers." He emphasised gratitude to security agencies for battling drug traffickers, adding that the elimination of "a large proportion" of dealers allowed exports to resume abroad.

Gabi Faraj, head of the Potato Farmers Union, was even more direct about the time constraint. "Saudi Arabia's readiness to reopen its markets is a very positive step for the Lebanese farmer and for all Lebanese products. I wish this decision would not be delayed and that its procedures be implemented quickly, within just a few days, because the need for these markets and opening the transit line is urgent," he remarked. 

Faraj also stressed the historical weight of the relationship: “The Lebanese-Saudi relationship is a historical one that must remain on this positive course. This is the correct path for the Lebanese people and the kingdom and its people. We are one people and must stand together on all fronts, economic and others”.

The cost of 'redemption'

The security protocols required to prevent another drug-smuggling scandal will reshape how Lebanese farmers and exporters operate and the costs they incur. 

Economic expert Jihad Hakim outlined the measures expected, saying, "Strict procedures are anticipated, including: thorough inspection of all containers before departure, approval of authorised exporters only, tightened customs control, shipment tracking and transport chain monitoring, and direct security cooperation between Lebanon and Saudi Arabia. The goal: prevent any recurrence of smuggling and maintain export continuity."

"These procedures, although they may increase operational costs, are necessary to restore confidence and ensure the sustainability of export activity. The Saudi decision represents an important economic opportunity for Lebanon, but success in benefiting from it depends on the state and private sector's ability to ensure quality standards and strict oversight," he added. 

Yet, farmers seem willing to accept the added burden.

Al-Solh called on producers to unite in embracing these new realities: “I call on farmers to stand together and commit to the highest standards of quality and safety, and to protect our sector from any exploitation that threatens the future of exports. Through our cooperation and unity, we restore confidence in the Lebanese product and ensure its continued presence in Gulf markets”.

Agriculture Minister Nizar Hani stressed in a statement that reopening Saudi markets "is not merely a return to a trade path, but an opportunity to revive an entire sector and restore the capacity of farmers and exporters to compete in a historic market that has embraced Lebanese products for decades."

The reopening would affect far more than farmers' bank accounts.

"Lifting restrictions is expected to contribute to gradually increasing export volume during the coming year, supporting farmers' continuity and strengthening productive capacity, and reactivating the land export route via Saudi Arabia toward other Gulf countries, which reduces logistics costs," Hakim outlined.

For rural Lebanon, already hollowed out by Israeli wars, repercussions of regional conflicts, and years of economic collapse, the restart of this trade artery could mean the difference between survival and abandonment of entire communities. Young people might stay. Debt could be managed. Schools and services might persist.

"Opening the Saudi markets will invigorate the agricultural export sector, which has suffered multiple shocks since 2020, strengthen confidence in Lebanese products in the Gulf, and contribute to easing economic pressure on thousands of families dependent on agriculture and export," Hani said.

A 'conditional' second chance

Yet everyone involved understands this is conditional.

Tarshishi acknowledged this reality when he credited security forces with dismantling the drug trafficking networks that had exploited farmers.

"Saudi Arabia is one of the first countries to receive Lebanese agricultural products and food industries, such as pickles and other products," he said. "I emphasise the importance of eliminating drug dealers who had exploited farmers to smuggle 'death pills' abroad."

The message was clear: the security achievements that have prompted this reopening must be sustained. One major smuggling bust, one breach of confidence, and the ban could snap back into place just as quickly as it might be lifted now.

Al-Solh framed it as shared responsibility: farmers must protect their own future. "We must protect our sector from any exploitation that threatens the future of exports. Through our cooperation and unity, we restore confidence in the Lebanese product and ensure its continued presence in Gulf markets."

Lebanon awaits a high-level Saudi delegation next week, a visit that will determine whether these signals translate into action. Agriculture Ministry data is ready. Farmers have crops waiting. The question now is whether Riyadh's warming words will become a commercial reality.

If it does, the sector faces recovery but not restoration; the old normal will not return. Instead, farmers will operate under permanent scrutiny, with added compliance costs and security protocols that transform how Lebanese agriculture interfaces with regional trade.

But as Faraj noted, even that compromise is preferable to the alternative. "We are one people," he said. "We must stand together on all fronts, economic and others."

For Lebanese farmers, that unity has never been more necessary, or more fragile.