Posted on March 8, 2022
Kenny Stancil
Common Dreams
As Russia intensifies its war on Ukraine, agricultural output from one of the world’s most productive growing regions has ground to a halt, causing the price of key food staples and fertilizer to approach record levels and sparking fears of worsening global hunger.
“The bullets and bombs in Ukraine could take the global hunger crisis to levels beyond anything we’ve seen before.”
“The escalation of the conflict is now putting markets into serious turmoil,” the Agricultural Market Information System said Monday 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.”
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.”
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.
According to Bloomberg, “Futures in Chicago jumped by the daily limit for the sixth straight session, rising 7% to $12.94 a bushel. That builds on a massive surge of 41% last week, the most in data spanning six decades.”
“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 news outlet reported. “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 high grain prices that helped contribute to the Arab Spring uprisings more than a decade ago have already been surpassed and are expected to increase further as long as Moscow’s attack persists—exacerbating hunger, especially if governments are unable or unwilling to soften the impact on workers and the poor.
wth this is not Russia's war on Ukraine but rather US war on Russia with Ukraine being occupied by US backed Nazis
Were is all this going to end?