Russia-Ukraine war pushes global food prices to a ‘new all-time high’, says UN

As the Russia-Ukraine war entered its 45th day with Russian armies continuously attacking Ukraine, the food prices across the world have been pushed to a "new all-time high", said the UN Food and Agriculture agency on Friday. The agency expressed concern about the risk of hunger around the world. Ever since Russian forces launched a special military operation against neighbouring Ukraine, the export flows into the Black Sea have been majorly disrupted, and western sanctions against Moscow have spurred fears of a worldwide hunger crisis, especially across the Middle East and Africa.

Russia-Ukraine war pushes global food prices to a ‘new all-time high’

The ongoing war has led to an increase in cereal prices by 17% over the past month, and the closure of ports, western sanctions, the financial crisis, and shipping problems have added to the rising price of food commodities. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, "The global wheat processing industry went up by 19.7% during March, while maize prices soared by a 19.1% month-on-month increase, hitting a record high along with those of barley and sorghum."

"The FAO Vegetable Oil Price Index rose 23.2 percent, driven by higher quotations for sunflower seed oil, of which Ukraine is the world's leading exporter. Palm, soy, and rapeseed oil prices also rose markedly as a result of the higher sunflower seed oil prices and the rising crude oil prices, with soy oil prices further underpinned by concerns over reduced exports by South America, "stated FAO.

It is important to mention that these issues are likely to persist longer, leading to higher prices and lower stocks, as stated by the Food and Agriculture Organization, adding to concerns about the uncertainty in the wheat market in the future. Low-income countries may face food shortages and struggle to pay higher prices, it added. Notably, Russia and Ukraine contribute to the world's main breadbaskets because of their wide grain-growing regions. Both countries account for a huge share of the globe's exports of several major commodities, including wheat, vegetable oil, and corn. Meanwhile, the United States has blamed Russian President Vladimir Putin for creating this ongoing "food crisis" across the world. On the other hand, France has warned about the increased risk of famine around the world.  

Russia-Ukraine war

As the Russia-Ukraine continues to intensify with western countries uniting to stand against Russia. In its latest development, Ukraine has claimed that it has killed more than 19,000 Russian troops. Furthermore, Kyiv has also raised demands for the exclusion of Russia from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), which is the world's largest regional security-oriented intergovernmental organisation with observer status at the United Nations.   

(Image: Unsplash/ AP)