Is the Ukraine crisis impacting global food prices?

There is no country in the world whose population does not gripe about the high cost of foodstuff and essential commodities – an issue that has worsened since the Russian war on Ukraine. In the Sultanate of Oman, Qais bin Mohammed al Yousuf, Minister of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion, recently addressed this issue by affirming that his Ministry and the other agencies concerned are closely monitoring the prices of foodstuff and essential commodities in the markets. He stressed that there are no fears of an impending shortage of wheat in the country, in light of the substantial stockpiles of the grain in key locations around the country. This provides assurance that that grain prices will remain unchanged. The minister also cautioned importers against increasing the prices of wheat and other essentials ahead of the blessed month of Ramadhan.

On the other hand, we see that the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations has indicated that the global prices of food and animal feed are likely to rise between 8 to 20 per cent due to the ongoing war, as both Ukraine and Russia are important producers and exporters of wheat in large commercial quantities. The FAO also believes that any price rise will also lead to human suffering and increase the number of malnourished people around the world.

This war may bring a lot of trouble to most Arab countries as well to others, and it may also adversely impact the ability of countries to import their requirements of wheat. International wheat prices have not witnessed an increase of the kind that we witnessed in 2008. Recently, many Arab countries announced that they have taken some measures to ensure adequate coverage of local markets and provide for the needs of their populations for the coming months. In all cases, they is working to take urgent measures in order to provide sufficient stocks of wheat to avert any food shortage and in light of their failure to achieve food security for their peoples.

Consumers, on their part, and with the approach of the blessed month of Ramadhan, do not hide their anxiety about possible disruptions in the availability of basic commodities amid the Ukrainian conflict. Most Arab countries import between 80 to 90 per cent of their food requirements, including wheat. This has prompted the authorities to raid merchants' stores to crack down on hoarding of essential staples and monitor the market for any price manipulations.