The devastating flash floods that swept through Nepal’s Bhote Koshi-Trishuli river corridor on 26 August 2026 have taken a heavy toll on communities, killing over 1000 people, forcing many to flee their homes and causing extensive damage to agriculture and rural livelihoods.
Preliminary assessments indicate that around 1,800 hectares of crops-mostly paddy-were damaged, while thousands of livestock were killed. Farmland, fisheries, food stocks and agricultural infrastructure were also affected, threatening the food security and incomes of farming families well beyond the immediate emergency.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is supporting the Government of Nepal’s response, including through emergency veterinary support and assessments of damage to agriculture and rural livelihoods.
In this interview, FAO Deputy Director-General Beth Bechdol discusses the impact of the floods on farmers and livestock producers, the most urgent agricultural needs and why restoring production ahead of the next planting season will be critical to recovery.
Q1. What has been the impact of the floods on people’s livelihoods?
BB: First of all, the human toll of the recent floods has been devastating. More than 1,000 people have lost their lives, thousands more remain unaccounted for, and entire communities have been affected.
But this disaster has also washed away the means by which many families feed themselves and earn an income.
Crops have been buried under mud and sediment. Fishponds have been swept away, and roads, bridges and markets have been damaged, disrupting the movement of food, animal feed, milk and other agricultural inputs.
FAO’s preliminary assessment indicates that around 1,800 hectares of crops have been damaged, mostly paddy fields, with production losses approaching 7,700 tonnes.
For farming families, these losses are about much more than the current harvest. Losing a crop can mean losing next season’s production and next month’s income.
Q2. How have the floods affected livestock and poultry?
BB: This is also an important livestock-producing area. Across 11 affected municipalities, there were more than 350,000 head of cattle, buffalo, sheep and goats, as well as 1.6 million poultry. Thousands of animals have now been reported lost, and we estimate that 5 to 10 percent of the livestock and poultry population in these communities may have been completely lost.
For a farming family, losing an animal is not only about losing food today. It can also mean losing an important source of income and future production.
That is why agricultural recovery needs to be considered as part of the response, and it has to begin early.
Q3. What are the most urgent needs for farmers and livestock producers?
BB: Farmers will need seeds, while livestock will need feed and veterinary care.
There is also an increased risk of animal disease following flooding like this. So vaccination, treatment and disease surveillance will also be important.
At the same time, we are working with the Government to understand the full extent of the damage to crops, livestock, fisheries, farmland and agricultural infrastructure.
We are using field assessments, as well as satellite and remote-sensing technology. We need to know not only where the flood went, but what it took with it-and what farmers need to produce again.
Q4: Why is the next planting season so important?
BB: There are really two clocks running at the same time.
The first is the immediate emergency: providing safe water, food, shelter and sanitation, and reaching communities that have been cut off from one another. Forty-one bridges have reportedly been destroyed, and damaged roads continue to impede access and constrain the delivery of humanitarian services.
But the second clock is agriculture. Planting season does not wait for a recovery plan. We also have a significant challenge with the land itself. Our satellite imagery shows cropland buried under mud and sediment, along with erosion and major sediment build-up. This will mean bigger challenges for long-term agricultural recovery.
Recovery is not simply about replacing seeds. We need to determine which fields can be brought back into production, restore soils where needed, repair drainage and irrigation systems, and help farmers prepare for the next crop.
If farmers miss the next planting season, the impact of this flood will last far longer.
Q5: What is FAO doing to support agricultural recovery in Nepal?
BB: Within about 24 hours, FAO had deployed emergency teams, including veterinarians, to affected areas. We provided veterinary medicines to treat injured animals, and we are doing our best to assess the risks of animal disease and the urgent need for feed. At the same time, FAO is leading the agricultural loss-and-damage assessment requested by the Government, so that it can build an informed and targeted recovery plan.
These immediate actions feed directly into FAO’s longer-term recovery work.
FAO brings something very specific and very important to the response: we work on the front end to rapidly boost food production as part of the emergency response and simultaneously focus on opportunities for agricultural recovery.
That could mean restoring damaged irrigation systems or getting seeds and tools to a family before the planting window closes. It could mean providing feed and veterinary services so that a surviving animal stays alive and productive. Or it might mean helping restore fisheries and local markets.
For us, the goal is not simply to replace or fix what was lost. It is to restore the ability of families to produce food and earn an income. When a farmer can produce again, a family begins to recover-and a community becomes less dependent on emergency assistance.
