Violent Winds in Chtouka: 1,500 Hectares of Greenhouse Crops Affected

The Minister of Agriculture, Maritime Fisheries, Rural Development and Water and Forests, Ahmed El Bouari, paid a field visit on Wednesday to the province of Chtouka Ait Baha, in the Souss-Massa region, to assess the situation of farms practicing greenhouse cultivation that were affected by the violent winds that occurred on 26 and 27 February 2026.

Placed under orange alert, this weather disturbance was marked by wind gusts locally reaching 110 km/h, accompanied by sand and dust storms that caused damage of varying severity depending on the area.

Preliminary assessments indicate that around 1,500 hectares of greenhouse crops were affected. The damage mainly concerns greenhouse covering plastics and protective netting. Production losses are still being assessed, but, based on field observations, remain limited.

During this visit, the minister went to several fruit and vegetable farms—mainly tomato farms—in the communes of Inchaden and Belfaa, to gauge the impact of the latest violent winds and to observe the nature and extent of the damage.

He also visited one of the main facilities supplying the national market with round tomatoes, with a production capacity of about 200 tonnes per day, in order to assess the condition of the installations and the impact of the winds on production activity.

The minister also held a consultative meeting with industry professionals, devoted to setting up a support and assistance mechanism aimed at quickly restoring production capacity in this area.

On this occasion, he reaffirmed the government’s full support for farmers and encouraged them to move quickly to rehabilitate the affected structures in order to preserve the region’s agricultural momentum.

In a statement to the press, Ahmed El Bouari indicated that this field visit made it possible to observe and closely assess the damage caused by the violent winds to agricultural holdings, assuring that the overall level of production was not heavily affected by this weather disturbance.

He added that the services of the supervisory ministry are mobilized to assist and support farmers affected by this natural phenomenon in order to fully revive agricultural activity in the coming days.

By way of reminder, the provinces of Chtouka Ait Baha and Taroudant are among the main sources supplying the national market with fruits and vegetables, as well as a hub for exports and job creation.

Indeed, the Souss-Massa region accounts for nearly 85% of national exports in the fruit and vegetable sector. These two provinces contain more than 24,000 hectares of greenhouse market gardening, with annual production nearing 2 million tonnes.