Enough food in SA reserves

SHORTAGES DUE TO THE WAR Increased costs in the production of grains could see major bread price hike.

Nonprofit Afrika Tikkun Foundation (ATF) has warned that South Africa’s poor people and small-scale farmers will need to be cushioned from the effects of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Food shortages and price hikes have already begun to affect South Africans and require immediate government response.

“We are concerned about the warnings suggesting small-scale farmers and the poor are suffering the consequences of the geopolitical crisis in Europe,” said chief executive Alef Meulenberg.

The agriculture, land reform and rural development department said the country had experienced good harvests and it had already imported a large share of import-dependent products, including wheat and rice.

But ATF said South Africa may still face a looming food security crisis because of inflation.

“There have been record global price hikes, including in the US where the consumer price [index] reached a 40-year high, jumping 7.9% annually.

“Global market shake-ups have shot up the price of fuel in several countries, including South Africa,” said Meulenberg.

ATF, which works in youth development, is also concerned because Russia is the world’s largest exporter of potash fertiliser.

“This has, in turn, affected food production prices in South Africa, which could be passed on to the consumer,” he warned.

A report compiled by the Agri SA economic centre of excellence suggests escalating conflict in the Black Sea region poses new challenges to global food markets, with soaring prices and supply chain disruptions.

These developments follow a slight global recovery from the effects of the Covid pandemic.

Increased costs in the production of grains, including maize and wheat, could see a major bread price hike in three months’ time because Ukraine and Russia account for a combined 30% of the world’s wheat exports.

The harbours of Odessa and in the Black Sea serve as major conduits for international grain shipments from Ukraine, which is also among the top exporters of barley, maize, sunflower and other oilseeds.

But Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development Thoko Didiza said on Tuesday there was no need to panic because the country had food supplies for the coming months.

“We have gained enough understanding of our available food supplies and are confident there are sufficient supplies for SA and the neighbouring Southern African Customs Union countries for the foreseeable future,” she said.