With one month remaining before Eid al-Adha, expected to fall on May 27 this year, charcoal prices in Morocco are rising sharply, adding pressure on households preparing for one of the holiday’s main grilling traditions.
According to industry professionals, wholesale charcoal prices have increased by more than 38% this year, driven mainly by a sharp decline in wood supply.
Orange wood charcoal, considered a premium, high-quality fuel commonly used for grilling during Eid, is now selling for up to 18 dirhams ($1.80) per kilogram at the wholesale level, compared with 10 to 13 dirhams in previous years, according to Mohamed Charkaoui, owner of a charcoal company in Casablanca.
“The charcoal is produced from orange wood sourced from farm-grown orange trees in Morocco, and it is seasonal, becoming scarce once production cycles end,” Charkaoui told Hespress English.
For Abdelatif El Kandady, a charcoal producer from Agadir, the main driver behind the increase is also the shortage of available wood, particularly after forest wood was not offered for sale this year.
“Forest wood in the Gharb region was not opened for sale this year,” El Kandady said.
He suggested that forests may be undergoing a form of “biological rest,” similar to temporary fishing bans used to preserve marine resources.
Beyond the Gharb region, El Kandady said producers in Agadir previously relied on wood from farms between Houara and Taroudant, an area known for orange cultivation.
However, falling groundwater levels over the years reduced farmers’ access to irrigation, causing many orange trees to die.
As water shortages worsened, farmers cut and sold the dead trees, creating a temporary abundance of orange wood charcoal and driving prices down in the region.
“But once most of the trees were cut and sold, that supply ran out. Today, traders mainly rely on northern regions where forest wood is still available, which has pushed prices back up,” El Kandady said.
He noted that the process began gradually about 10 years ago as the water table continued to decline, eventually forcing many farms to stop production entirely.
In Agadir, wholesale charcoal prices now range between 8 and 9 dirhams per kilogram, while retail prices have reached 12 to 15 dirhams, compared with around 4 dirhams wholesale and 7 dirhams retail last year.
The price surge is also affecting traders, who say profit margins have narrowed significantly.
“Margins that once reached 1 to 2 dirhams per kilogram have now become minimal or unstable because of constant fluctuations in supply costs,” Charkaoui said.
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