Attachments
Key Messages
- As of December 2025, food security conditions in El Salvador have improved compared to mid-year, primarily supported by an average primera maize harvest that is replenishing household stocks and temporary seasonal commercial crop harvest employment opportunities in rural areas. Agricultural labor demand for coffee and sugarcane harvesting from November 2025 to February 2026 provides a temporary boost to rural incomes in crop-producing areas, improving localized food access for many poor households through the end of the year. Many poor households in the Dry Corridor that previously faced food shortages have temporarily benefited from the average primera harvest and are expected to minimally reduce their food consumption gaps until March 2026.
- Despite an irregular start to the rainy season, delayed sowing, and above-average temperatures during the primera season, improved rainfall in July following the canícula replenished soil moisture and supported typical crop development. Vegetation conditions have improved since last month, with crop water needs largely met, resulting in average primera maize yields slightly above the five-year production average, replenishing household food stocks. Furthermore, national producers anticipate an above-average maize harvest in the 2025/26 cycle, supported by favorable weather conditions and government interventions such as the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock’s production program, which provides seeds, fertilizers, and fungicides. However, the postrera bean harvest was average to below average*,* constrained by erratic rainfall, dry spells, and heat stress from above-average temperatures, particularly in the Dry Corridor.
- Maize prices fell sharply in November 2025 after the delayed primera harvest but remain 20 percent above last year and the five-year average. Wholesale bean prices increased seasonally and remain 30 percent above the five-year average. Price relief is expected once the postrera harvest reaches markets, but until then, high bean prices will continue to constrain household food access and consumption. Fuel prices remained stable in December, with minimal month-on-month variation, limiting transport cost increases and supporting relative stability in food markets. Despite these factors, staple grain prices remain elevated compared to historical averages, continuing to limit purchasing power for poor households.
- Temperatures will remain above average until March 2026, after which temperatures are forecasted to return to average. Rainfall is expected to remainerratic through April; however, overall average rainfall totals and average temperatures will support an average start to primera sowing in 2026. Employment will decline after the coffee harvest ends in March, reducing rural incomes. Starting in April, food security conditions are expected to deteriorate as household food stocks are depleted, and rural labor demand declines. Most poor households will meet their minimum food needs, but increasingly rely on negative coping strategies, such as consuming less preferred foods, reducing meal size and frequency, and reducing dietary diversity. Subsistence farmers in the Dry Corridor in particular are likely to face food consumption gaps and deteriorating conditions from April to August 2026, during El Salvador’s lean season.
Recommended citation: FEWS NET. El Salvador Key Message Update December 2025: Near-average primera harvest and seasonal labor sustain food access, 2025.