El Salvador is on track to record a historic grain harvest for the 2026–2027 cycle, defying the adverse severe weather expected from the Super El Niño phenomenon. The success stems from a proactive strategy spearheaded by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG) through its Production Increase Program, which successfully urged local farmers to advance their planting schedules into late April and early May.
Driven by this early start and sustained by consistent seasonal rainfall, national projections anticipate a staggering 18 million quintals of corn across 431,750 acres (250,000 manzanas) and 2.3 million quintals of beans over 172,700 acres(100,000 manzanas). The agricultural push also encompasses 13,816 acres (8,000 manzanas) of vegetables and 43,175 acres (25,000 manzanas) of sorghum, alongside a steady coffee yield of 950,000 quintals, demonstrating widespread sector resilience.
Key to this climate adaptation effort is strong public-private coordination alongside international support from the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and the FAO. In western El Salvador, smallholders received 589 agricultural kits and saw 30 irrigation systems rehabilitated to safeguard rural livelihoods and bolster long-term food security against unpredictable weather patterns.
Reflecting on the nationwide transformation, Mateo Rendón, national coordinator of the Rural and Indigenous Agricultural Table, emphasized: “We are in November and farmers nationwide have good crops; this progress is based on the decision to advance planting in the last week of April and the first week of May. Now, basically, the country is carpeted in corn and beans.”