Lebanon has a vibrant agricultural, agrifood and agritourism sectors. Agriculture covers around 64% of Lebanon’s total land area, and the agrifood industry offers a wide spectrum of traditional, fusion, and innovative products. Since around 2016, agritourism has emerged as a new approach to tourism in Lebanon, offering opportunities to boost both the tourism industry and rural development. This trend accelerated after 2019, in the wake of the economic crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, as all three sectors experienced renewed growth. Many entrepreneurs began exploring more innovative and sustainable initiatives across tourism, agriculture, and rural development.  

Despite this growth and potential, the three sectors have faced persistent challenges for decades. They are severely underfunded, suffer from a lack of state support, and operate without a coherent national strategy. The workforce in both agriculture and agrifood production is marked by high levels of informality, instability, and precarity. Many farmers and food producers are struggling to keep their business going, are heavily reliant on exports, with limited access to local markets. 

These structural issues have been further exacerbated by a series of profound and overlapping crises that have affected the country over the past six years. Lebanon has been experiencing a severe economic collapse, described by the World Bank as one of the worst globally since the mid-19th century. This crisis has been characterized by a deliberate depression, the collapse of the banking sector, hyperinflation, and the rapid devaluation of the Lebanese currency. The breakdown of public services has accompanied these economic challenges, along with increasing poverty and unemployment rates, pushing large segments of the population into precarity. 

In August 2020, the country was hit by the Beirut port explosion, one of the most powerful non-nuclear explosions ever recorded, killing over 200 people, injuring thousands, and causing massive destruction to homes, infrastructure, and livelihoods in the capital. 

Shortly after, the global COVID-19 pandemic further exacerbated Lebanon’s socio-economic conditions. More recently, in the summer of 2024, the country was once again faced by a violent conflict, as fighting escalated between Hezbollah and the Israeli armed forces. The war, which continues to this day in southern Lebanon, has led to renewed displacement, loss of life, and the further destabilization of local economies—especially in rural and border regions. 

The story of Lebanese entrepreneur Nabil Khoury and his artisanal food production company, Dry and Raw, reads like an allegory of Lebanon itself—reflecting both the country’s rich cultural and culinary diversity, and the challenges it has endured across decades. The vision behind the company, along with its wide range of products, draws deeply from Lebanon’s abundant food and beverage heritage. 

From an early age, he was not only deeply curious about food, but also immersed in Lebanon’s longstanding traditions of agriculture and artisanal production. This early exposure planted the seeds for what would become a lifelong passion:  

 “Every summer, we used to go to our village in Akkar. We would stay for about two months with my father’s aunt, a very skilled woman who had the only tannour (a dome-shaped clay oven, often built into the ground or a stone structure). in the village. She made real sourdough bread. The dough would ferment from Thursday until Saturday, for at least two or three days. I would watch the whole process closely, and on Saturdays, I would get to taste all kinds of bread. Of course, while baking, they also made cheeses and other things, and I would be awake from early morning, observing everything. I absorbed all this knowledge deeply. That same summer, my aunt taught me how to make cheese. I made my first baladiyye cheese and cultured butter when I was just six years old. 

When I was sixteen, I left home and started living on my own. I had to cook for myself, so I began to use all the heritage and knowledge I had absorbed as a child. It was like these skills had been stored inside me, just waiting to be awakened. I began using them naturally—and that’s how my journey started.” 

In his adult life, Nabil Khoury wore many hats. He studied medicine for a time, then music in Prague, and later worked in journalism, communications, and with various NGOs across the MENA region. Despite spending 25 years abroad, his passion for food and beverage production remained alive. “Whenever I had some money left, I would go on food tourism trips—traveling across Europe, learning how special food and beverages are made,” he recalls. 

Eventually, the demanding work in the region took its toll. Nabil felt the need to return to Lebanon and reconnect with something that brought him joy and peace. “I wanted to do something I truly loved—something that would help me relax and release all the stress I had accumulated,” he says. 

Together with his brother Dany, the two explored several business ideas before settling on Dry and Raw—a food innovation and production enterprise rooted in Lebanon’s agricultural richness. Their concept was to use high-quality, natural ingredients sourced from the country’s pastures and green fields to create artisanal food products that combine traditional knowledge with a fresh, modern approach. 

Dry and Raw was officially established in the summer of 2019 and opened its first shop and production facility in February 2020 in Beirut. Since then, the company has steadily grown. Today, it operates two production facilities in southern Lebanon: one dedicated to cheese production, and another serving as a central kitchen for non-dairy products. The company sells its creations in a showroom located in Antelias, just north of Beirut, in more than 30 selling points, restaurants and guest houses across Lebanon, in addition to several online platforms. 

In recent years, Dry and Raw has become more than just a food enterprise—it has emerged as an inspiring model for a unique approach to food production. Rooted in locally transmitted knowledge and traditional craftsmanship, the company combines these foundations with a modern, globally influenced vision. Thanks to its clear mission and meticulous, high-quality production, Dry and Raw has grown into a true success story. Today, it creates more than 300 specialty cheeses, cold cuts, gourmet snacks, condiments, fermented drinks, spices, juices, and ice creams, earning a loyal customer base both in Lebanon and abroad. 

Nabil, Dany and their team are proud to present all their produces in detail:

• Over 40 varieties of handcrafted pestos and sauces made from fresh herbs, extra virgin olive oil, and premium nuts—50% of which are vegan.
• 10 pure, natural nut and seed butters without additives, including peanut butter with Himalayan salt and pistachio butter with coconut sugar.
• 16 nourishing, cold-pressed oils for both culinary and cosmetic use.
• 40 varieties of in-house dehydrated fruits, rich in natural flavors and nutrients.
• More than 50 types of cheeses, crafted from free-range cow, goat, and sheep milk. Their selection includes Lebanese staples and international favorites like Burrata, Mozzarella, Camembert, Gouda, Pecorino, Blue Cheeses, Manchego, etc…
• A broad range of fermented drinks like kefirs and kombuchas, both water- and milk-based, featuring unique blends with probiotics.
• Innovative plant-based products such as tempeh and tofu, available in natural, flavored, and smoked varieties as vegan alternatives
• Fine Chocolates: Bean-to-bar chocolate bars and chocolate-covered fruits, including signature flavors like mint and orange.
• 20 varieties of all-natural sorbets and ice creams, made from real fruits and quality ingredients. 

At Dry & Raw, they also specialize in producing a premium range of cold cuts, including prosciutto, aged sausages, bresaola, and ham, all crafted with traditional methods and carefully aged to perfection. In addition, they offer a selection of marinated fish, blending rich flavors with the finest quality ingredients. 

In addition to employing 20 passionate individuals across its three facilities, Dry and Raw actively supports local farmers and food producers in line with its dedication to sustainable agriculture and food production. The company purchases directly from its partners, provides training, and equips them with the tools needed for sustainable livestock farming and agriculture.

Moreover, Dry and Raw sources all its packaging materials from local Lebanese producers and seeks to minimize plastic use wherever possible. Today, plastic accounts for only 5% of its total packaging. 

Yet, to speak only of the company’s success would be to overlook the other half of its story. Founded in 2019, Dry and Raw was born just before Lebanon plunged into one of the most turbulent periods in its modern history. The company has endured—and adapted—through six consecutive years of crisis, including the economic crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, and lastly the war in 2023/2024 that mainly hit the South – where Dry and Raw had just moved its production facilities.  

Nabil recounts the turbulent history of his business: “We established the company in March 2019. But before we could even open, the October 2019 uprising began. Then came the economic crisis—prices soared, we couldn’t access our money, and all our feasibility studies became meaningless. As things worsened, COVID-19 hit. Curfews and limited opening hours made it nearly impossible for clients to reach us. This situation dragged on until early 2023. 

By June 2023, we finally started to see signs of economic recovery. People were discovering us, restaurants were reopening, and we began expanding—building our new production facilities in the South. Our central kitchen opened on October 6, 2023. On October 8, the war started in the South—and we were based in the South. Addousiyeh, our village, was the first inland area to be bombed. 

On September 23, 2024, the area went into full lockdown. Our village was bombed 63 times. For the first two weeks, we couldn’t move at all. Roads were unsafe, and transporting goods was impossible. The factory shut down; the majority of our staff have fled to Beirut and other safer areas and some stayed home. In the second week, a bomb hit just 60 meters from the factory, shattering windows and destroying 53 solar panels. That was the end of electricity—we went ten days without power. We had to discard all fresh products, worth around $20,000.” 

Today, Dry and Raw is back on its feet—once again. “As an entrepreneur, you have to be tough, flexible, and patient. You need to stay agile. Hold on to your principles and end goal, but be open to different ways of getting there,” says Nabil as an advice to fellow entrepreneurs. It is this agility—combined with deep passion and profound expertise—that has shaped Dry and Raw into what it is today: an innovative, globally inspired yet locally rooted food and beverage venture, based on sustainable agriculture and food production, and committed to bringing the finest flavors to Lebanon, crafted with professionalism, freshness, and love. 

More information about Dry and Raw in their social media accounts (FB, IG) and currently building their e-commerce website.