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Salvadoran farmers lament crop losses from El Niño drought
🇵🇾 Paraguay /Environment & Climate

Salvadoran farmers lament crop losses from El Niño drought

From ABC Color · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News From a news agency Context piece
  • Salvadoran farmers in San Esteban Catarina are experiencing devastating losses of corn crops due to an extreme drought linked to the El Niño phenomenon.
  • One farmer reported planting 3.5 manzanas of land but losing three, expecting only 10 quintales of harvest compared to 230 last year, after investing over $3,000.
  • El Salvador is under a red alert for drought, with grim forecasts for late 2026 and early 2027, leaving farmers reliant on divine intervention and hoping for more rain before the season ends in November.

The atmosphere in the corn-growing areas of San Esteban Catarina, a municipality in El Salvador's San Vicente department, is desolate. EFE observed fields heavily impacted by extreme temperatures and a lack of rain during the wet season.

Ramón García, a 72-year-old farmer, walked through his fields, surveying the loss of his corn crops due to the drought. He told EFE that he planted 3.5 manzanas of land this year and has lost three. He had aimed for a harvest of around 300 quintales of corn, but now expects only about 10 quintales. In contrast, his 2025 harvest yielded a good 230 quintales.

We who live by agriculture only hope for the harvest, after God, and if there's no little harvest, we're ruined.

— Ramón GarcíaA 72-year-old farmer describing the impact of the drought on his livelihood.

García invested over $3,000 in this year's planting and expects no profit. He hopes to earn "at least $200" from selling dried corn stalks, known as zacate. "We who live by agriculture only hope for the harvest, after God, and if there's no little harvest, we're ruined," he lamented.

I feel sad, you feel bad for so much work, so much sacrifice, and all for nothing. We can only trust in God, because he knows what he does and we cannot contradict his will.

— Ramón GarcíaA farmer expressing his emotional distress over crop losses due to the drought.

El Salvador is on red alert for the drought caused by El Niño, a state declared by the Directorate of Civil Protection, with severe forecasts for late 2026 and early 2027. García expressed sadness and helplessness, attributing the drought to "God's will." "I feel sad, you feel bad for so much work, so much sacrifice, and all for nothing. We can only trust in God, because he knows what he does and we cannot contradict his will," he said.

He stated that this year's drought "has affected all" farmers in San Esteban Catarina, with only those who planted near a "vaguada" (a low-lying area) possibly retaining more moisture from dew. He hopes for more rain towards the end of the rainy season, which runs from May to November in El Salvador. "If it doesn't rain, we can't plant, but if it does, we will keep planting, we won't give up." García asserted that previous years did not see a drought like this year's, which he described as "the longest."

If it doesn't rain, we can't plant, but if it does, we will keep planting, we won't give up.

— Ramón GarcíaA farmer expressing resilience and hope for future planting despite the current drought.
About this summary

Originally published by ABC Color in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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