Experts are warning that the world faces a historic famine. The war in Ukraine is only one of many problems plaguing the global distribution of food.
In Yemen, Ghalib al-Najjar skips meals so that his children have enough food. He says he and his family “live like ants or fish … we eat what we can find.”
In the months ahead, experts warn, food is going to be harder to find in many more nations.
A Perfect Storm
A perfect storm of several problems is decimating the world food supply. It’s been called the biggest food crisis since World War II.
The World Food Program estimates that 285 million people face starvation.
The head of the World Food Program, former South Carolina governor David Beasley, says the world food supply already faced a catastrophe before the war in Ukraine.
“We’re so short of funds already, and now with Ukraine, we’ve got 50% rations for people, for example, in Yemen, I’ve just cut 50% rations for 8 million people. Niger, 50% rations, Chad 50% rations. And 50% don’t have anything, those who are in extreme need,” Beasley says.
In the U.S., Americans have seen food costs rise 10% over last year, the steepest increase in 40 years, which experts say will lead to an increase in malnutrition among America’s poor.
In the developing world, however, it’s become a matter of life and death.
War in Ukraine Takes One-Third of the World’s Wheat Off the Table
Russia and Ukraine together produce almost one-third of the world’s wheat. But Ukrainian farmers have been sidelined and Russian exports have been sanctioned.
Beasley says, “They’ve got to be planting again and harvesting again. If they don’t, you’re going to have a global supply problem.”
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