What is Food Protectionism? It is when a nation limits its exports to be sent outside of the country. Over the last two weeks, we have seen several countries put a stop to food exports. This started last year with Brazil deciding after a terrible season it wouldn’t be able to send as much out as they had planned. China had a terrible harvest season as well because of climate issues. China has been buying up everything it possibly could.
Southeast Asia has hit a brick wall with the production of cooking oil. These nations won’t be shipping out as many materials as originally planned. No! This isn’t Russia’s fault by any means. Given the situation between Russia and Ukraine isn’t helping matters. The only reason I am even bringing it up is that this is where the majority of the wheat for bread is grown. Yes, some nations do grow their own grain, but not enough.
I am going to leave a number of articles for y’all to read and understand why I have reached the assessment that I have. We are headed for rationing. I am not talking about just in America, I mean worldwide just like during WW II. Limited products and people to feed caused both England and America to ration products. The upside of the food rations is that by the end the people were in better shape than they’d been in years. They had unlimited fruit and veggies they grew and lean meats. Fats and sugars, however, were limited and expensive. They rode bikes and walked everywhere. Driving was limited because gas, oil, and tires were rationed. So driving was done on a must-do basis. We are headed down the same path.
References
Durisin, M. (2022, 03 11). Record Food Prices Could Leap 22% More on Ukraine War, UN Warns. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/record-food-prices-could-leap-135000572.html
Larkin, N. (2022, March 11). Supply Chain Latest: Food Protectionism Threat to Crop Trading. Bloomberg.com. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2022-03-11/supply-chain-latest-food-protectionism-threat-to-crop-trading
Live Mint. (2020, 03 25). Few Countries Creeping Toward Food Protectionism. https://www.livemint.com/news/world/few-countries-creeping-toward-food-protectionism-11585138842982.html
Macron Reiterates Support For Moldova, Georgia, Who Both Face Breakaway Regions. (2022, February 26). Radio Free Europe. https://www.rferl.org/a/31725278.html
Stuttaford, A. S. A. A. (2022, 03 10). The Coming Food Crunch: Hoarding and the Hunt for Self-Sufficiency. https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/the-coming-food-crunch-hoarding-and-the-hunt-for-self-sufficiency/
TORERO, M. (2022, 03 04). Op-Ed: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine should not cause a hunger crisis. https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2022-03-04/op-ed-russia-ukraine-food-prices-trade
Wardany, S. E., & Wahba, A. L. (2022, March 10). Egypt Bans Wheat, Flour Exports Amid Russia-Ukraine War. Bloomberg.com. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-03-10/egypt-to-ban-exports-of-staple-foods-to-safeguard-reserves
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