Minister: Lebanon to build new silos to ease wheat crisis

By KAREEM CHEHAYEB
Associated Press

BEIRUT (AP) — Cash-strapped Lebanon plans to build two new grain silos to fight its food security crisis for millions living in poverty. Caretaker Economy Minister Amin Salam told The Associated Press on Wednesday that several countries, including the United States, France, Germany and the United Arab Emirates have shown interest in bidding or funding the project. Lebanon’s only grain silos barely stand in ruins at the Beirut Port after a devastating warehouse explosion that killed over 200 people two years ago. Parliament has voted to spend a World Bank loan to import wheat. About half the country’s population struggles to afford adequate food, according to the United Nations World Food Program.