Why India’s food value-chain needs better risk management instruments amid Ukraine war

The last few years proved extremely volatile for the food value-chain due to issues ranging from the pandemic-induced supply chain disruptions to the impacts of climate change on agriculture. To add to the already existing woes, the escalation of the Russia-Ukraine conflict has inflicted a major blow to the foundations of the global food security agenda. Ukraine and Russia are the world’s ‘breadbaskets’ producing more than 30 per cent of the world’s wheat and barley, 20 per cent of the global maize produce, and more than 50 per cent of the world’s sunflower oil. This has resulted in increase in household expenditure on food by 34 per cent over the previous year. The situation is slated to aggravate further with the trade restrictions and sanctions – making the access to these essential agricultural commodities extremely difficult for a host of countries.