The Russian military's ongoing assault on Ukraine has brought one of the world's leading "breadbaskets" to a virtual standstill. As a result of diminished exports, wheat prices have surged, reaching levels last seen during the global food crisis of 2007-2008 that led to political unrest in many countries.
David Beasley, executive director of the World Food Programme (WFP) at the United Nations, warned recently that "the bullets and bombs in Ukraine could take the global hunger crisis to levels beyond anything we've seen before."
"This is not just a crisis inside Ukraine," said Beasley. "This is going to affect supply chains, and particularly the cost of food."
"This is an unnecessary shock of mega proportions," Arif Husain, chief economist at the WFP, said of Russia's war on Ukraine.
"The escalation of the conflict is now putting markets into serious turmoil," the Agricultural Market Information System said in a report. "Any serious disruption of production and exports from these suppliers will no doubt drive up prices further and erode food security for millions of people."
Ukraine and Russia together account for more than a quarter of global trade of wheat, used in everything from bread to noodles and livestock feed. The conflict has closed major ports in Ukraine, and severed logistics and transport links. Trade with Russia has also been stifled by the complexity of navigating sanctions and soaring insurance and freight costs. The invasion will also deter Ukrainian spring planting of crops like corn and sunflower that would typically begin soon and may hamper winter-grain yields, extending the supply shock on the global market.
War on Ukraine Sparks Fears of Global Food Crisis 'Beyond Anything We've Seen' (commondreams.org)
No comments:
Post a Comment