Kandahar's Grape Farmers Turn to Raisins as Border Closures Wipe Out Exports

In Kandahar province, a plentiful grape harvest has become a source of anxiety rather than prosperity. Farmers who once relied on exporting fresh fruit to Pakistan, their primary market, now find their produce stranded by months of border closures and sporadic cross-border fire between the two nations.

With the export route severed, growers have flooded the domestic market with fresh grapes, causing prices to collapse. Many have shifted to drying their crop into raisins, a cheaper product that also commands far lower prices than in previous years.

Sakhi Jan, a grape orchard owner in the Zhari district, described the strain on his household of ten. He said that seven kilograms of raisins, which previously sold for 1,000 to 1,200 afghanis ($13 to $16), now fetch only 400 to 450 afghanis ($5 to $6).

"We are grateful, but things aren't like they used to be, the struggle is much harder now," Jan said. "In the past, work was steady... but now the hardship is immense." He urged both the Afghan government and Pakistan to reopen the crossings and reach an agreement, saying the current situation is causing great hardship.

The economic toll extends beyond individual farms. Abdul Baqi Bina, deputy director of the Kandahar Chamber of Commerce and Investment, noted that the closure has severely impacted exports of grapes and pomegranates. In 2025, five southern provinces exported 44,225 tons of grapes worth $13.8 million, with nearly all going to Pakistan. So far this year, only 256 tons have been exported, valued at just $100,000.

For exporter Haji Abdul Hai, the situation is unprecedented. "In my 50 years of life, I have never seen these roads closed to the extent they are now," he said, noting that past closures were brief or partial. "But now, we are facing truly major difficulties."

The crisis has also decimated seasonal employment. Qudratullah Popal, a grape picker, said the orchard where he works employed about 1,500 people last year; this year, that number has fallen to around 15. "When routes are blocked and trade halts, everyone's livelihood is paralyzed, traders, laborers and orchard owners alike," he said.