President Joe Biden said Thursday that a food shortage is looming in the US in the near future – and it “is going to get real.”
Following the sanctions imposed by the US government on Russia as a result of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, Biden predicts food will be scarce and more expensive than ever across the country.
“In terms of food shortages, yes, we’ve talked about food shortages, and it’s going to be real,” Biden said during a news conference at a NATO summit in Brussels, Belgium. “The price of sanctions will not only be imposed on Russia. It is also being imposed on a great many countries, including European countries and also our country.”
grains
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Russia and Ukraine are considered the “bread baskets of Europe” due to their expansive wheat production. The two countries together account for nearly a third of global wheat and barley exports.
Wheat prices are up 55% in the week before Russia invaded Ukraine. Ports in Ukraine that ship wheat and other staples worldwide that are made into bread, pasta and animal feed have been closed as millions flee or stay to fight in the war.
Ukraine is also a major supplier of corn and a world leader in sunflower oil used in food processing. The war could reduce global food supplies, creating food insecurity and pushing more people into poverty in countries like Lebanon and Egypt, where bread dominates the diet.
It will also affect people in the US who are living paycheck to paycheck and are struggling to afford groceries for their families.
“It comes at an absolutely horrible time for American consumers because we expect inflation to hit nearly 10% any day,” Dan Varroney, a supply chain expert, told Fox Business. “Last month’s numbers were close to 8%. And that means consumers, including those living paycheck to paycheck, will pay more for groceries.”
The story goes on
Read more about how the war in Ukraine is affecting food by America’s largest grocery chain pulling this article off the shelves.
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