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Food and agriculture
OpinionComment
Mayssa Al Midani
Mayssa Al Midani

The View | Ukraine conflict highlights the need to find better ways to feed the world

  • Shortages exacerbated by the war have sharpened the resolve of both governments and people, giving businesses and innovators a chance to overhaul the system
  • From better logistics and agricultural technology to alternatives to meat, grains and fertiliser use, a food revolution is brewing

Reading Time:3 minutes
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A severely malnourished child receives treatment at Gode Hospital in Somali, Ethiopia, on April 12. The region is braced for its most severe drought in 40 years amid a global food crisis made worse by the Ukraine war. Photo: UNICEF via AP
Mayssa Al Midani
Surging food prices and supply problems, exacerbated by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, have cast a spotlight on what was already a major global problem: food security.
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Food demand is expected to increase by around 50 per cent by 2050, compared to 2013 levels, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization. Yet, supply will struggle to keep up, given that arable land and water resources are shrinking in many parts of the world and that, even today, some 2 billion people do not have regular access to safe, nutritious and sufficient food.

The Ukraine war, which has led to shortages of grains and fertiliser, and adds to already high inflation, is expected to push back progress on food security by 10 years. More people in South Asia and Africa are likely to spend over 20 per cent of their income on food, exacerbating the problems caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

These are huge and complex social and environmental challenges for which there is no silver bullet. Solving them requires solutions across the food value chain.

The crisis should, however, focus minds and accelerate both the adoption of alternatives to grains and less-efficient animal proteins, as well as the development of efficient food production and shorter, more secure supply chains.

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That, in turn, presents an opportunity for innovative businesses and investors who can work together to improve the sustainability, accessibility and quality of food.

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