Minister of Economy and Trade Amin Salam reassured the people that Lebanon's wheat reserves were sufficient for about a month and a half.
He stressed that several countries have expressed their willingness to help in the event that the country was forced to import additional quantities.
He made his comments in response to fears expressed over wheat shortages as a result from the war in Ukraine, as Lebanon imports more than 60 percent of its wheat from the Eastern European country.
Following a meeting on Thursday with Prime Minister Najib Mikati, Salam said: “There is a stock of wheat that is sufficient for a month or a month and a half… We are communicating with several countries, including the United States and others, who have expressed their willingness to help if we needed to import large quantities of wheat.”
The minister called on the citizens not to panic. He said that with the approaching holy month of Ramadan and amid fears of food shortage, he held an extensive meeting on Wednesday with the concerned authorities from the private sector, specifically importers, owners of supermarkets, mills, bakeries and traders of livestock, poultry, dairy and cheese.
“We reached an agreement that they will continue to provide us with the quantities they have, and we will continue to cooperate with them so that there is no interruption in the markets,” he stated.
Salam added: “The quantities that we consume in Lebanon are not large compared to neighboring countries. There is aid and international support, and work through the government and the Ministry of Economy is in place.”
The minister also warned merchants against manipulating food prices, stressing that the authorities would take harsh measures in this regard and would consider such acts as a criminal offense.
