Only a few months separates mankind from a new large-scale threats. Pandemic coronavirus, and caused by the economic crisis will lead to mass starvation which, as expressed in the UN will be comparable in scale to the “Bible”. But it is not the shortage of food. Falling incomes and rising unemployment will force people to save money on food. Hunger in the twenty-first century looks different than two or even one century ago. People, even the poor, will be forced to deliberately underfed. Consumers have to change the structure of your diet and give preference to cheaper products. For example, animal protein will replace the plant, and will go with honey Turkey and beef on a budget peas and lentils.
Executive Director of the world food programme (WFP) David Beazley stated that the crisis caused by the pandemic coronavirus can lead to starvation of biblical proportions in the next few months. According to him, the number of people who are on the verge of starvation, could grow from 135 million to 265 million.
Pandemic COVID-19 created an additional threat in the form of hunger on a global scale, says the Director of the FAO office for communication with the Russian Federation Oleg Kobyakov. “Any barriers that restrict movement within and between countries. Disrupted supply chain. Started failures in the systems of food supply. At stake, a future harvest, as around the world millions of workers can’t get to fields to ensure that the seed and the harvest. Losing the income of migrant workers, which will limit economic access to food even for millions of families,” he says.
meanwhile, by the end of 2019, the 135 million people in 55 countries suffered from “food insecurity” in the total number of hungry people in 821 million.
Experts interviewed by “MK”, deciphered the warning of the UN in the following way: if the pandemic is delayed, and incomes continue to fall, the number of people who are undernourished will increase dramatically. And it’s not only about the population of countries with low living standards.
the world Food and agricultural organization of the UN (FAO) regularly conduct research on the threats to food security. According to them, the required amount of products cannot afford not only the citizens of several countries of Africa and Asia, traditionally considered to be poor, but the inhabitants of developed countries. Now the proportion of undernourished in rich countries very little, but if the crisis continues and the number of unemployed will increase, quantity will increase substantially.
food Production is growing in the whole world, says the General Director of Institute of agrarian marketing Elena Tyurina. So the problem is not the deficit food products and their distribution.
the Markets of countries which produce large volumes of product, are interested in increasing sales and to import. However, to realize all production volumes, they can not, and this is associated with lower incomes. Consumers pay falls everywhere. In particular, in Russia under the pressure of circumstances of a pandemic, employers cut the salaries of employees and fire personnel.
According to Tyurina, the overproduction of food globally and the reduction of solvent demand of the population at risk to provoke a crisis in the food market. “In such a situation the food prices should fall, since the current cost for consumers is very heavy, — said the expert. — The measure can go to those manufacturers whose production structure has an energy — namely, oil. The fall in wholesale prices of gasoline, oil and lubricants in Russia — the factor that will allow to reduce the cost of the product. For example, grain producers of energy in the structure of production is about 50%”.
the Apparent food shortages in the country. Thanks to importozameshcheniju, Russian farmers produce quantities of food sufficient to ensure the needs of the population. Moreover, Russia is still the number one exporter in the world for corn, wheat. We also send abroad the butter, confectionery. We have documented overproduction of pork and beef. The flour we produce more than we consume.
“Russia has enough reserves of food for the coming months. The risk of food shortages will increase if production will massively close the doors. But while such a prospect is unlikely, and there is no reason to say that soon there will come a famine,” — said the chief researcher of the Center for agrofood policy, Ranepa Vasily Uzun.
However, the population can no longer buy the volumes of food items that were acquired before the crisis. People have to change the structure of your diet and give preference to cheaper products: relatively speaking, with beef and Turkey go to chicken meat. If the pandemic is delayed, and with it will continue falling incomes and animal protein consumers will replace the plant and will feed on a budget peas, beans and lentils.
