Russian ships and sea mines block Ukrainian Black Sea ports. Before the war, Ukraine exported on average about 6 million tons of agri-commodities monthly to countries in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa. Currently, only about 15 to 20 percent of this volume can be exported via rail, Danube river, and trucks (about 700,000 tons in April 2022 and about 1 million tons in May 2022). Also, trade risks related to Russian exports have been increasing due to sanctions by […]

The current context of record food prices and increasing food insecurity has given new urgency to the role of trade in addressing the challenges we face today. Groups representing farmers, ranchers, food producers and exporters from Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, New Zealand, South Africa and the United States of America issued the following statement: “With record food prices and ever-increasing food insecurity, it would be unimaginable for the WTO to fail to deliver a substantial outcome on agriculture at […]

That worsening is the result of the war, but the underlying crisis is both larger and more structural — in the W.F.P.’s estimation, at least, the bulk of growth in that “acute food insecurity” category is the result of worsening conditions before the invasion. That’s mostly thanks to Covid-19, climate change and conflict — the “three C’s,” says the Cornell economist Chris Barrett, who specializes in agriculture and development and is the co-editor-in-chief of the journal Food Policy. “It used […]

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! A food crisis putting nearly 50 million additional people around the world at risk of famine has no quick solutions, officials with the World Food Programme and its U.S. counterpart told Fox News. The war in Ukraine is fueling the food shortage, but supply chain complications stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, rising costs and climate issues, has compounded the crisis, according to the officials. “We have more threats to food insecurity than […]

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in late February dramatically worsened the outlook for already inflated global food prices. The halt in Ukrainian exports following the outbreak of the conflict pushed the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) food price index, which tracks international prices of the most globally traded food commodities, to its highest point in March since records began in 1990. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a move Russia calls a “special operation” to demilitarise its neighbour, is the latest development in […]

With few good solutions — one option put forward appears to be a risky naval escort — the United States and its allies have sought to make it clear who they feel is responsible. Accusing Russia of “blackmail,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said this week that the Kremlin was holding back its own supplies of grain after attacking Ukrainian storage facilities and seizing stocks, all while blockading the country’s ports. “The consequences of these shameful acts are […]

As Russia’s ground war in Ukraine falters, its naval vessels have made strides in the Black Sea, seizing control of Ukraine’s coastline in a way that allows them to launch strikes at targets inland and tighten a blockade on Ukraine’s exports. Now, Western governments are scrambling to find ways to break the blockade and ease the strains on the global commodities and agricultural markets rocked by the war. Ukraine, referred to as the “breadbasket of Europe,” feeds some 400 million […]

The North Carolina grocery retailer is getting ready to open a third location in Pineville, seeing growth in the local Asian community. PINEVILLE, N.C. — While Charlotte has become one of the fastest-growing cities in the country, a North Carolina grocery retailer is also expanding. The Korean-owned Super G Mart on Independence Boulevard has already seen its customer base increase, and the owners believe now is the time to go big. Peter Han, one of the owners of Super G […]

Apocalypse is an alarming idea, commonly taken to denote catastrophic destruction foreshadowing the end of the world. But in the original Greek, apokálypsis means a revelation or an uncovering. One vernacular definition is “to take the lid off something”. That latter feat is exactly what Andrew Bailey, governor of the Bank of England, achieved last week, possibly inadvertently, when he suggested Britain was facing “apocalyptic” levels of food price inflation. Tory ministers fumed over what they saw as implied criticism […]

India has banned wheat exports as the price of grain surged this year due in part to the Russia-Ukraine war. T. Narayan | Bloomberg | Getty Images India has banned wheat exports, becoming the latest country to do so as the price of grain surged this year due in part to the Russia-Ukraine war. The war has triggered a huge spike in wheat prices, with Russia and Ukraine among the biggest exporters of the commodity. Both countries account for 29% […]