Cumin farmers in Tal Abyad and Ras al-Ain, northern Syria, have suffered significant losses due to drought and diseases affecting large areas of their crops.
Farmers had turned to cumin as an economic alternative to declining wheat production. However, low rainfall, the spread of root rot and sun scorch diseases, and rising farming costs led to an unprecedented drop in yields.
A Losing Season
Farmers described this season as a “losing” one, with production barely reaching 20 kilograms per dunam (1,000 square meters), while breaking even requires between 40 and 50 kilograms per dunam.
Hatim Al-Ragheb, 43 years old, from Suluk town in Tal Abyad, planted 35 dunams of cumin hoping to repay 16 million Syrian pounds in debt from last cotton season. Due to drought and crop diseases, his yield dropped to only 12 kilograms per dunam. He called this the worst season since 2021, with production failing to cover even half of his farming costs, pushing his debts up to 25 million Syrian pounds.
Mohammed Al-Abdallah, 61 years old, from Al-Mabrouka village near Ras al-Ain, cultivated 50 dunams of cumin and 20 dunams of wheat, aiming to save enough to buy a house. Despite a promising start, heatwaves and drought caused severe wilting, destroying about 80% of his crop and resulting in losses exceeding 28 million Syrian pounds. He appealed for urgent support from the Ministry of Agriculture.
Cumin is a relatively new crop in the region, adopted as a substitute for wheat and cotton due to marketing difficulties and the high costs of cultivating the latter with limited profits.
Causes
According to agricultural engineers interviewed by Enab Baladi, the heavy losses are primarily due to drought and water shortages, which weakened cumin plants and made them vulnerable to fungal diseases such as root rot and sun scorch. These conditions wiped out nearly 80% of the crop. The high cost of pesticides and the lack of agricultural support have further compounded farmers’ struggles in managing these challenges.
Engineer Ali Al-Mahmoud emphasized that improving irrigation systems and using effective pesticides regularly are key to preserving future harvests. He also noted that the remaining crop suffered from poor quality, causing a drop in market prices and further reducing farmers’ incomes.
Drought-damaged cumin crop in northern Syria – May 2025 (Enab Baladi)
Weak Marketing Drives Prices Down
Majd Kassar, Director of Agriculture and Livestock in the local council, told Enab Baladi that the area planted with cumin this season in the Ras al-Ain region reached 24,000 dunams, noting that crop damage reached 80%.
He explained that the primary cause of this damage was drought, which directly affected the growth and productivity of the crop.
Kassar added that cumin prices dropped significantly—from around $4,000 to $4,500 per ton in previous seasons to approximately $2,500 this year—due to the absence of a clear mechanism for marketing the crop.
He stressed the importance of establishing a specialized body for marketing aromatic and medicinal plants, as it would help organize sales, protect farmers from price fluctuations, and open new markets to help them sell their crops and achieve stable economic returns.
Agriculture, along with livestock breeding, remains one of the main sources of income for most residents in Ras al-Ain and other areas in northern and northeastern Syria.
Ras al-Ain and Tal Abyad lie along the Turkish border and are under the control of the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army (SNA), which is affiliated with the Ministry of Defense. The two towns are surrounded by inactive frontlines with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), and the Turkish border serves as their only outlet to the outside world.
Cumin season a “loss” in Tal Abyad and Ras al-Ain Enab Baladi.
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