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Because of the war in Ukraine, millions of people may not have enough to eat.
Ukraine is one of the most important wheat exporters in the world. The war and the blockade of Ukrainian ports have caused grain prices to skyrocket. Jakob Kern, emergency aid coordinator of the World Food Program of the United Nations (WFP), explains in the SRF program “Club” what it means for Ukraine and the world if the grain gets stuck in the ports any longer.
SRF News: Mr. Kern, you say that Ukraine used to feed the whole world. Now Ukrainians need help to feed themselves. How is the situation on site?
Jakob Kern: The Ukraine is the fifth largest wheat exporter in the world and fed about 400 million people with wheat. Now we are in a situation in Ukraine where food is available but people in the war zones don’t have access to it. When I was in Kyiv, there were practically no shops that stocked groceries.
In Europe, the whining is at a high level when the wheat price rises by 30 percent.
On the other hand, a quarter of the population fled to western Ukraine. These people have access to food but no money to buy it. We at the World Food Program are helping the government in the East, where the fighting is taking place, to distribute food. These are boxes of 17 kilos, enough for one person for a month. In the west, we give people cash so they can buy groceries.
Ukraine no longer has an income because it can no longer export its grain. 20 million tons are stuck in the ports. Half of the wheat from the World Food Program, which is active in many countries, cannot be delivered. What does that mean for all the people who depend on the wheat?
In Europe, the whining is at a high level when the wheat price rises by 30 percent. Bread will perhaps be 5 centimes more expensive at some point. But if a person in Yemen, Somalia or Syria spends 90 percent of their income on food, then a 30 percent increase in price marks the very fine line between eating enough and not eating enough. This is the situation we are in now.
It’s not that the whole world is out of wheat or grain, but prices have gone up and the poorest are hit hardest.
It’s not that the whole world is out of wheat or grain, but prices have gone up and the poorest are hit hardest.
We are talking about 400 million people, mainly in Africa, who could be affected. Actually, there would be enough grain in the world. What’s the problem then?
First, the problem is that many countries are sitting on their strategic wheat reserves and are no longer exporting them. The other thing is that a lot of countries in the Middle East, but also in Africa, depend on Ukrainian wheat because it’s cheap and close to transport. It is much closer from the Black Sea to Syria or Yemen than from the USA or India. That, along with the Covid pandemic, has pushed up the price.
For us at the World Food Programme, this means that we now spend CHF 70 million more on the same amount of food every month. With CHF 70 million, we could support four million people for a month with a full shopping basket. This is a very concrete consequence of the war and the rise in prices.
The interview was conducted by Aron Marighetti and Barbara Lüthi.