Food in Comoros

Households obtain food through farming, artisanal fisheries, imports through ports, inter-island distribution, markets, shops, informal vendors and restaurants. Local production includes bananas, cassava, coconut, maize, fish, seafood and livestock. Farming faces low yields, manual methods, limited land, an aging workforce and exposure to drought, cyclones and other natural hazards. Vanilla, cloves and ylang-ylang are important cash crops but do not replace staple imports. The local term riz ordinaire refers to ordinary rice, while riz de luxe and basmati describe higher-priced varieties. Nearly all rice is imported. ONICOR, the state-owned rice importer, remains central, while private ordinary-rice importers have operated since June 2023. The reform is still evolving: the IMF's 2026 objective is for private importers to handle at least 50% of ordinary-rice imports by the end of 2026. Preliminary 2025 information indicated that only about 7% of ONICOR import orders went to private importers, but this does not prove their final share of the national market. Comorian cooking commonly combines rice, cassava, green banana, fish or seafood, coconut milk or coconut-based sauces and spices. It reflects African and Swahili, Arab, Malagasy and Indian Ocean influences. Mhogo mwitsi wa nazi na gnama is a local cassava dish prepared with coconut milk and beef, and m'tsolola is a local stew term. Home cooking, shared meals and hospitality are common within an Islamic cultural context. No single national recipe standard has been evidenced. Food costs respond strongly to import prices, freight, foreign-exchange conditions and fuel. A 2022 fuel shock was associated with a historical 33% increase in rice prices. No verified nationwide schedule for current retail or restaurant prices exists; prices can differ between islands and markets, although the size of that difference has not been quantified. Urban restaurants, hotels and tourism services are developing, but they rely heavily on imported inputs and may face inconsistent local supply. Markets and street-food sales are mainly informal. The 2024 SMART nutrition survey reported 24.1% stunting, 7.8% wasting and 13.5% underweight among children under five. Stunting was 25.4% in Ndzuwani, 20.5% in Mwali and 23.3% in Ngazidja. Among women aged 15–49 in surveyed districts, 58.6% had anemia: 28.4% mild, 28.6% moderate and 1.6% severe. Dietary diversity remains limited, and breastfeeding, vitamin A and deworming coverage is uneven. Health and community services target nutrition support according to groups such as pregnant women, women of reproductive age, children under five and adolescents. Food safety is based on Loi n°17-005/AU 2017 and Article 92 of the Code de la santé publique. The Ministry of Health, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Handicrafts, Ministry of Trade, Customs, port authorities and the Chamber of Commerce share related responsibilities. INRAPE carries out sanitary inspection and laboratory work. A 2026 FAO-supported reform is introducing risk-based import controls because more than 80% of food enters from abroad, but inspection procedures and checklists are not yet uniform between islands. Importers have compliance duties covering health and environmental requirements, traceability and risk control. A clearly evidenced standalone national consumer complaint and recall channel is not yet available. Food resilience depends on local seeds, better farming, fisheries management, storage and transport. SEPAREF activities from 2022 to 2025 included certified local seed, digital early-warning systems, 15,000 kg of CIRAD 412 maize seed, 600,000 sanitized cassava cuttings, 467 participating farmers and training for more than 150 staff. CNCSP and ANAM support monitoring, control and surveillance of fisheries, including measures against illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing and alignment with the Port State Measures Agreement. Cold-chain and post-harvest capacity remain key to reducing losses and improving the reliability of local supply. This country-level account concerns the Union-administered islands of Ngazidja, Ndzuwani and Mwali. Maore, also known as Mayotte, is under French administration and is not included. Island conditions should therefore not be treated as interchangeable, especially for nutrition, food prices, port supply and access to local products.