Using satellite imagery taken between May 2017 and 2024, United Nations Satellite Centre (UNOSAT) and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) found that 57 per cent of Gaza's permanent crop fields and arable lands essential for food security had shown a significant decline in density and health.
"In May 2024, crop health and density across the Gaza Strip showed a marked decline compared to the average of the previous seven seasons", UNOSAT said on Thursday.
"This deterioration is attributed to conflict-related activities, including razing, heavy vehicle movement, bombing, and shelling."
The decline, UNOSAT said, marked a 30 per cent increase in damaged agricultural land since it published its last analysis in April.
Israel's ground and air campaign was triggered when Hamas stormed southern Israel on Oct 7, killing around 1,200 people and seizing more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
The offensive has killed more than 37,000 people in Gaza, according to health authorities in the Hamas-run enclave, and has caused mass destruction and cut off routes for aid.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on Wednesday there were more than 8,000 children under five years old in Gaza who had been treated for acute malnutrition.
As well as damage to crop fields and orchards, greenhouses across the Gaza Strip had also sustained significant damage, UNOSAT said.
The Gaza Strip has an estimated 151 square kilometres of agricultural land, which makes up about 41 per cent of the coastal enclave's territory, according to data from UNOSAT.