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 Threat to food supplies  infographic
Graphic shows rise in agricultural prices in last year.
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UKRAINE

Russia’s invasion threat to world food supplies

By Duncan Mil

March 14, 2022 - The war in Ukraine could hit global food security by disrupting the July wheat harvest and planting season, while Russia’s blockade of Black Sea ports will affect Ukraine’s agricultural exports.

Egypt -- the world’s top wheat importer -- imports around 70 per cent of its wheat from Russia and Ukraine. Lebanon imports 60 per cent of its wheat from Ukraine, while 80 per cent of Tunisia’s grain also hails from these two countries.

Ukraine accounts for about 47 per cent of global sunflower seed meal and sunflower seed oil trade. Due to port and facility closures in Ukraine, seed exports are down 57 per cent, oil exports are down 14 per cent, and meal exports are down 13 per cent since the start of March, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Over the last decade, Ukraine has significantly climbed the ranks as a grain exporter, this year aiming for No. 3 in wheat and No. 4 in corn.

According to the USDA, most of Ukraine’s wheat crop is in the southeast, which is currently under heavy attack.

“Ukraine has been called ‘the breadbasket of Europe’ because of its rich soil, where vast fields have been productive for centuries,” says Angela Weck, professor of Russian Foreign Policy at America’s Bradley University.

“During the Soviet period, a quarter of the entire agricultural output of the USSR came from Ukraine. Ukraine has more arable land than Russia, which is 28 times its size,” Weck says.

Sources
PUBLISHED: 14/03/2022; STORY: Graphic News; PICTURES: Getty Images
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