Farmers in Haiti’s Maniche drive rice production revival aiming to restore battered agriculture sector      

MANICHE, Haiti — At dawn, Samuel Altidor heads to his rice fields in this rural commune tucked in Haiti’s southern peninsula. As he checks water levels and surveys for pests, he joins dozens of other farmers reviving a crop central to Haitian meals and culture: rice.

“Rice production allows us to eat better and provide for our family’s other needs—like our children’s school tuition, books and uniforms,” Altidor, father of five, told The Haitian Times with a grin. 

“Before, we were stuck with just mayi [corn meal] or imported rice— we couldn’t even afford to buy anymore.”

Now, with support from the Manichean Organization for South Integrated Development (OMDIS, as per its French acronym), dozens of farmers, like Altidor, are reviving the paddies using a combination of traditional and modern techniques. 

“We have received substantial assistance from OMDIS to boost rice production in the region,” Altidor, 45, said.

In Maniche, a southern Haitian commune about 120 miles from Port-au-Prince, farmers are working to revive rice farming after decades of decline caused by international trade policies, natural disasters and lack of state support. With the support of grassroots group OMDIS, they’re using modern techniques to restore a critical part of Haiti’s food sovereignty—pushing back against decades of reliance on foreign imports.

How did Haiti lose its rice?

Until the early 1990s, Haiti was still producing enough rice for its domestic needs. The country gradually lost its rice production due to a combination of factors, including trade liberalization policies imposed by international financial institutions to facilitate the influx of cheap imports and minimal government investment.

As a result, subsidized United States rice, branded as “Diri Miami” or “Miami Rice,” has captured the local market, contributing to a subsequent decline in national rice farming. Natural disasters, sociopolitical instability and inadequate infrastructure further worsened this shift. 

As far as Altidor can remember, it all began in the late 1980s, when the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, he recalled, agreed to provide Haiti’s government with substantial loans in exchange for slashing tariffs on imported goods, with “made in USA” products benefiting massively by a margin of  82% to 90%. 

By 1995, as part of the U.S.-backed conditions for restoring then-President Jean-Bertrand Aristide to power after being deposed by a bloody military coup in September 1991, the World Bank and the IMF pressured Haiti to reduce import tariffs on rice specifically from 50% to 3%. At the same time, the U.S. government had been subsidizing American rice-producing farmers, enabling them to export at very low prices to countries like Haiti.  

In 2010, former President Bill Clinton publicly apologized for forcing Haiti to drop tariffs on imported subsidized U.S. rice during his time in office. He admitted that his administration’s policies wiped out rice farming, seriously damaging Haiti’s ability to be self-sufficient and spurring a food crisis.

“It may have been good for some of my farmers in Arkansas, but it has not worked. It was a mistake,” Clinton said before the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “I have to live every day with the consequences of the lost capacity to produce a rice crop in Haiti to feed those people, because of what I did.”

As cheaper rice from the US began to flood the country, urban consumers initially benefited from the low-cost imports; however, the massive imports ultimately led to a decline in national rice production. Today, according to a recent U.S. Department of Agriculture report, Haiti imports nearly 90% of the rice it consumes—purchasing 475,000 metric tons mainly from the U.S., Pakistan, Taiwan and the Dominican Republic out of a forecasted 530,000 metric tons needed for local consumption.

“Haitian farmers like us in Maniche have borne the brunt, facing the nonstop flow of U.S. rice imports—selling at a fraction of the price of rice grown in-country,” the farmer said.

In recent years, sociopolitical instability and gang violence have accelerated the decline in rice production further. For example, in the Artibonite Department, once known as Haiti’s rice basket—producing 70-80% of the national output, most farmers have been forced to abandon their rice fields due to increasing insecurity, extortion and fear for their safety.   

Data from the World Food Programme (WFP) estimates that, as of 2023, up to 3,000 hectares of farmland have been left deserted since 2018, as farmers have moved to cultivate in less productive and smaller areas in the Artibonite region.  

Harvest ransoms, depleted land, and displaced farmers in Artibonite spark a food crisis in Haiti’s primary agricultural region

Rice has become increasingly important in the national dish. It has even changed the dietary habits of Haitians. Most families used to eat rice two to three times a week, but now consume it daily. An important detail to consider is that a recent University of Michigan study found that there are levels of arsenic in American rice that may not affect health in small doses, but could lead to cancer, heart disease, diabetes and learning disabilities when consumed in high amounts.

A local push for food sovereignty

The collapse of local rice farming devastated rural economies like Maniche’s. Many producers, such as those in the Artibonite Valley, abandoned the crop, moving to urban centers or switching to subsistence farming. Meanwhile, Haiti became one of the most import-dependent countries in the Caribbean.

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OMDIS, founded in 2016 by residents—primarily farmers, aims to reverse that trend and create a replicable model. The organization supplies training, seeds, fertilizer and has introduced the System of Rice Intensification (SRI), a low-input method that boosts yields with less water.

“We prepared demonstration plots so farmers could compare their traditional methods with SRI,” said agronomist Francisco Nogaüs. “They saw the difference immediately.”

“I really enjoyed the training and like the new techniques,” Altidor, 45, said. 

On one plot, two pots (approximately 10 lbs) of rice seed yielded nearly four metric tons per hectare—a result previously unthinkable, although specific data before OMDIS’ interventions are not available. Altidor said he now exclusively uses the SRI method, and his rice yields have more than doubled.

Leaders of the farmers’ organization say these changes are essential to restoring Haiti’s food sovereignty. “We must increase production—not only for our households but to feed the region,” said Claudel Lamondri, taking part in the initiative.

Lamondri urges more farmers to join the organization’s efforts. “We need a stronger collective with thousands of farmers to become part of the initiative for more substantial and impactful results,” he added. 

Economic hope amid hardship and national implications

Beyond feeding families, the program provides some economic relief. Farmers divide their harvest into three parts: one for consumption, one for seed, and the other for sale. To support local farmers and reduce their logistical burden, OMDIS purchases rice directly from them at market price.

Looking back at how tough things used to be, Altidor cheered, saying, “Thanks to the earnings from selling rice to OMDIS, we are in a better financial position.”

Still, the effort faces major challenges. Many plots lack irrigation canals, forcing farmers to rely on rainfall or carry buckets of water from a distance to irrigate their farms by hand. Rice processing remains labor-intensive, with no mechanized tools like threshers or dryers. “Modern agricultural equipment is very costly,” said agronomist Raphaël Pierre Thomas, president of OMDIS.

Rice production in Haiti occurs during the spring and fall rainy seasons, with planting preparation typically beginning in March and August. The Maniche region primarily relies on rainwater irrigation for its rice cultivation.

“This is a serious issue,” Pierre Thomas conceded. “If we could modernize processing, it would change everything.”

What’s happening in Maniche reflects a national debate over Haiti’s agricultural future. The country has ideal growing conditions, but imports more than half of its food. According to recent assessments, the WFP estimates that nearly half the Haitian population experiences food insecurity. 

Specifically, the WFP indicates that 5.7 million people are now facing acute food insecurity. Of this number, over two million are experiencing emergency levels of food insecurity (IPC Phase 4), and approximately 8,400 internally displaced people due to growing gang violence face catastrophic levels of hunger (IPC Phase 5)— the most severe stage, where people endure extreme food shortages and a risk of starvation.

Many analysts argue that any path forward must include investments in local production—especially in staple crops like rice.

International aid organizations occasionally provide support to local farmers.  But programs have been inconsistent and efforts lack coordination to maximize results. 

 U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID used to help some of the most vulnerable farmers across Haiti, providing much-needed resources to mill and sell crops. However, the agency’s programs have recently been halted due to the Trump administration’s freeze on foreign funding activities.

Even the World Food Program, which primarily aims to source as much of its food locally to support national agriculture, is now short on funds as a recipient of USAID assistance. The international agency heavily depends on cash-based aid and development projects, but it also receives what is called in-kind assistance—bags of food grown in the U.S. and shipped overseas.

In Maniche, like in some other parts of the country, the Ministry of Agriculture has provided limited support, mainly through the Bureau Agricole Communal (BAC), which distributes fertilizers and seeds. The local director of BAC, Agronomist Occé Occerlio, said that more comprehensive support is necessary to expand the effort.

“The rice fields are coming back,” he said, “but we need long-term policies to sustain them.”

Despite the obstacles, Maniche’s farmers, like those of Ouanaminthe in the northeast and other regions in Haiti, where agriculture remains the breadbasket of families, are hopeful.

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“We’ve started again, and we won’t stop,” Altidor said. “We believe in our land, and in our rice.”