Fear of food crisis as grain silo ruined
Print Edition
LEBANON’S main grain silo at Beirut port was destroyed in a blast, leaving the nation with less than a month’s reserves of the grain but still with enough flour to avoid a crisis, the economy minister said yesterday.
Raoul Nehme said that Lebanon needed reserves for at least three months to ensure food security and was looking at other storage areas.
“There is no bread or flour crisis,” the minister said. “We have enough inventory and boats on their way to cover the needs of Lebanon on the long term.”
He said grain reserves in Lebanon’s remaining silos stood at “a bit less than a month” but said the destroyed silos had only held 15,000 tons of the grain at the time, much less than capacity which one official put at 120,000 tons.
Beirut’s port district was a mangled wreck, disabling the main entry point for imports to feed a nation of more than 6 million people.
Ahmed Tamer, the director of Tripoli port, Lebanon’s second biggest facility, said his port did not have grain storage but cargoes could be taken to warehouses 2 kilometers away.
Alongside Tripoli, the ports of Saida, Selaata and Jiyeh were equipped to handle grain. Hani Bohsali, head of the importers’ syndicate said: “We fear there will be a huge supply chain problem, unless there is an international consensus to save us.”
Reserves of flour were sufficient to cover market needs for a month and a half and there were four ships carrying 28,000 tons of wheat heading to Lebanon.
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