Venezuelan Agriculture: Farming Remains a Major Rural Occupation

The premise that "few Venezuelans are farmers" is inaccurate. Agriculture continues to employ a significant share of the rural workforce.

Current Reality

• Employment: ~13–15% of total employment (ILO/World Bank), concentrated in rural states (Barinas, Portuguesa, Guárico, Apure, Mérida, Táchira, Zulia).
• Key crops: Corn, rice, sorghum, sugarcane, coffee, cocoa, plantains, vegetables, tropical fruit.
• Livestock: Cattle (beef/dairy) — Llanos plains; poultry, pork.
• Land tenure: Mix of private farms, cooperatives, state-owned enterprises (post-2000s land reform).

Challenges Reducing Farm Viability

• Input shortages: Fertilizer, agrochemicals, spare parts, fuel (subsidized but scarce).
• Price controls: Fixed margins discourage production.
• Credit access: Limited formal financing; high inflation erodes loans.
• Infrastructure decay: Irrigation, rural roads, cold storage.
• Migration: Rural→urban and emigration (5–7M abroad) drain labor.

Policy Context

Government promotes "food sovereignty" via communal councils, state distribution (CLAP boxes), and import substitution—but production has declined since 2013. Venezuela now imports ~70% of calories.

So: Venezuelans do farm, but under severe constraints that shrink output and income.