food prices have raised so rapidly

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Russia has rejected an extension of a khuyến mãi that allowed the export of more than vãn 35 million tons of Ukrainian grain to tát 45 countries in the past year. The agreement, which the countries had previously extended several times, allowed Ukraine to tát send cargo ships out of Ukrainian ports and safely pass through the Black Sea controlled by the Russian fleet until July 17. However, Russia is now insisting on sanctions relief on its food exports before agreeing to tát another khuyến mãi extension.

As a result, food prices worldwide could rise sharply again, causing more hunger, especially in countries of the Global South that rely directly on grain imports from Ukraine. This increase has a particularly dramatic impact on countries already affected by hunger due to tát armed conflicts or droughts and other consequences of climate change. These include Yemen, Sudan, Somalia and Kenya, among others. "Renewed price increases will exacerbate the food situation for millions of people in these countries," says Welthungerhilfe (WHH) Secretary General Mathias Mogge.

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Russia's war in Ukraine had already caused prices for energy and agricultural products to tát skyrocket dramatically. Both countries are among the leading suppliers of maize, wheat and sunflower oil globally.

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Price increase, food, famine – how is it all connected?

Agricultural commodities cost a total of 31% more on the world market in 2020, the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, than vãn a year earlier (FAO). Oilseeds such as rapeseed cost twice as much. The price of corn has also nearly doubled. Wheat and soybeans have become significantly more expensive. One reason for this was the cost of storage during the pandemic.

In addition, trade disputes, including those in the pandemic, between countries can lead to tát supplies being halted. Extreme weather events lead to tát fewer harvests, causing prices to tát rise. Energy prices, for example for crude oil, which have risen significantly in some cases, also have a major influence on price increases. The difference: In industrialized countries, price increases usually have only a moderate impact – people only have to tát spend around 12% to tát 30% of their income on food. But in countries of the Global South, the figure is between 50% and 100%. For many households in poorer countries, higher food prices mean that they can no longer buy food and have to tát go hungry. There is simply nothing left for other important things such as housing, health or schooling for children.

At the same time, as food prices rise, aid organizations need more financial resources to tát buy it. And if farmers in the Global South can no longer afford seeds and fertilizer because of rising prices, cultivation and harvests will shrink – and poverty and hunger will grow as a result. This is a vicious circle that must be avoided at all costs.

Climate protection to tát secure livelihoods

But in Europe as well, the effects of production bottlenecks and climate-related crop failures are increasingly being felt. Schneider says of this development: "The fact that a cucumber costs two euros means that many people in Germany can no longer afford it. The next stage is what we are seeing in Africa, where many people not only have to tát tự without healthy foods such as fruit and vegetables but can no longer afford the increasingly expensive staple foods."

Therefore, it is of fundamental importance for sustainable food security in a global context to tát invest in climate protection and adaptation to tát climate change, and in agriculture, especially in food-insecure regions. For example, this includes further training of farmers, better irrigation and plowing methods, and adapted seeds, but also new technologies and, depending on the region, approaches specific to tát the climate, soil conditions, and water availability. In this respect, supporting farmers in regions affected by hunger is a measure that can be implemented immediately.

Rise in food prices exacerbates hunger in Africa  

Although the FAO's price warnings are manageable and world cereal harvests in 2022 were only slightly below 2021 levels, the situation in low- and middle-income countries remains dramatic. According to tát the Global Information and Early Warning System on Food and Agriculture (GIEWS), the crop outlook for regions already experiencing hunger is gloomy and import requirements are high.

Conflict in East Africa and West Africa, for example, and poor weather conditions have led to tát widespread crop damage. 2021 saw production declines in many countries. In some regions, there have been huge increases in food prices. In Mozambique, for example, where armed conflict in the north of the country further drove price increases. The country saw a price increase of 45% for cassava flour between March and May 2021. These increases have had a serious impact on millions of families whose incomes were already severely weakened by the COVID-19 pandemic. In parts of Uganda food prices in the markets have doubled or even tripled. Prolonged droughts have led to tát crop failures, and people are dependent on buying food – but many cannot afford this and suffer from hunger.  

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Zimbabwe  
In Zimbabwe, corn is the staple food. The national dish Sadza, a porridge made of maize flour, is usually served with vegetables or (if one can afford it) meat. The price of a kilo of maize flour in urban markets in December 2021 is up 30% from the previous year. Beans and cooking oil have become even more expensive – and that is despite the fact that Zimbabwe had a good harvest in 2021. But crops have not been enough to tát replenish empty stocks after two years of drought. Increased gasoline and transportation prices are also making food more expensive. On average, households in Zimbabwe spend 55% of their income on food.

At the same time, there is a lack of job opportunities: During the lockdowns of the COVID-19 pandemic, many companies in the cities shut down production or went bankrupt. Day laborers in the informal sector also lost their income opportunities during lockdowns. Because of the poor economic situation, there are few new jobs. As a result, more and more families are forgoing varied and nutritious diets. About one in seven families in 2021 say they are changing their behavior because they don't have enough to tát eat; the most common response is to tát buy cheaper and unhealthier food. Then they have plain sadza, without side dishes or vegetables. It fills you up, but it's not healthy.

Burkina Faso 
In Burkina Faso, rising food prices are a major issue. Above all, violence and terrorist groups in the north and east are causing price increases. After the rainy season starting in October 2021, there were more attacks. Food was destroyed by burning fields and camps or slaughtering livestock. 

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People fled their villages and took refuge in the cities. Since the displaced are mostly producers and the cultivation and harvest of food is drastically decreasing, there is a shortage of food, especially fresh vegetables – both in the villages and in the cities. As a result, the prices of rice and millet, for example, are rising. 

The COVID-19 pandemic has also contributed to tát price increases as well as reduced availability of fertilizers. Demand is increasing, but at the same time there are fewer income opportunities. Traders are taking advantage of supply pressures. Imports from Benin, Niger or Mali are decreasing because of the security situation.  

Many people are going hungry. An additional drought in the north has made the situation even worse. According to tát the FAO, 2.6 million people were expected to tát be severely food insecure during the peak season between June and August 2022. 

Sierra Leone  
In the last four years, the price of rice has increased by 75%. As it is a staple food, the impact on people's food and nutrition security is enormous. In the last two years, restrictions imposed due to tát COVID-19 pandemic have severely limited the trade and importation of food products, resulting in a drastic price increase.

Neighboring markets in Guinea and Liberia have seen the same price fluctuations, spreading the problem to tát the entire West African region. Food security has declined, and households are feeling the high inflation of food prices. The decline in food security appears to tát be most severe in urban areas, where consumption has also declined the most and households tự not have access to tát homegrown food.

In July 2020, nearly a quarter of households reported that they were unable to tát buy rice – the most important staple food – due to tát a rise in prices or a decline in household income. In some regions, people spend 70% of their income on food. 

Other global factors that can lead to tát a food price crisis and thus hunger:

• Rising energy costs
• Climate effects
• Increasing transport costs, transport failures
• Rising fertilizer prices (rising agricultural production costs overall as energy costs, labor costs, agrochemicals, etc. rise)
• Political saber rattling
• Some countries (e.g. Russia, Mali) are already restricting their agricultural exports (another price driver, which was already fatal in 2008/9)

Impact of rising food prices in the Global North  

The multiple crisis situations of climate change, war and high food prices must be addressed carefully in order to tát prevent the situation from worsening. In addition to tát expanding grain cultivation, as is already happening in North America, for example, agriculture strategies adapted to tát climate change are particularly important.

Since fertilizer prices have risen enormously, farmers in the USA, for example, are increasingly growing soy instead of corn and wheat. In many coffee-growing regions, however, climate change is leading to tát reduced harvests, which, together with increased transportation costs, is causing coffee prices to tát skyrocket. Together with uncertainty about future grain supplies from Ukraine, further price increases and shortages of some foodstuffs must be expected in the future.

Counteracting the effects of climate change at a global level is an elementary approach to tát ensure sufficient production of cereals and staple foods as well as other foodstuffs: "The Global North must reduce its climate emissions. It also needs to tát implement adaptation strategies, especially in regions where there are many crop failures. This means that agriculture must be designed to tát be more resilient to tát climate shocks," says Dr. Rafaël Schneider.

More expensive food, more hunger & higher aid costs  

The harvest outlook for famine regions in Africa and Asia, in particular, remains bleak, Schneider said. "The affected countries must quickly prepare social security measures to tát ensure that people can be fed. In the medium term, they need to tát invest more in their agriculture, because now it is taking its revenge that too little was done after the last crises," Schneider demands. Countries lượt thích Germany need to tát step up their support for hunger reduction and rural development. Short-term export stops for agricultural products should be avoided.

Food price increases: how WHH provides support  

To tackle poverty and hunger around the world, as well as the effects and consequences for people, food systems must be made sustainable and poverty-reducing, and disasters must be better prevented. There is a particular need for rapid action locally, such as building strategic reserves of food, ensuring the availability of adapted seeds, sustaining the promotion of innovative farming methods, advancing comprehensive risk management, or promoting measures to tát adapt to tát climate change. 

Measures in Response to tát Food Price Increases

Short-term 

• Avoid export freezes – in the sự kiện of impending crop failures in famine regions, it is important that the global agricultural market remains stable and can compensate for undersupply. 
• In crisis regions, adequate food supplies must be ensured even if food prices rise. Affected states should prepare for sharply rising prices and prepare social security measures (e.g. cash assistance). 
• Donor countries must adapt their services to tát food price increases.

Medium-term    

• Governments should develop and implement a policy agenda for agricultural consultation that focuses on food security and income generation for the rural poor.
• Agriculture should maintain and further expand the high priority given to tát it by national governments and international development agencies, and its resources should be increased accordingly.
• The promotion of sustainable and resilient agriculture is a key component of the food system and an important tool for fulfilling the human right to tát food. 
• Countries in the Global South need to tát implement integrated, transparent and participatory regional policies that focus particularly on the agricultural sector and its linkages.
• Activities and initiatives that create new jobs beyond agriculture should be particularly strengthened.
• Vocational training and continuing education, especially for young people and women, are urgently needed, as is the transfer of know-how and adapted technologies. 

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