Now, as the Russian-Ukraine war enters a tug-of-war stage, Western countries such as Europe and the United States have also increased sanctions on Russia. These hasty and intensive sanctions, together with weapons aid, seem to be not just to help Ukraine, it has another important purpose - that is to destroy Russia's economy. It is not easy to destroy , an economy like Russia, but in this closely linked era of globalization, the serious consequences of sanctions have begun to emerge, with not only Russians but also thousands of farmers around the world.
Everything is just because Russia is the world's major fertilizer exporter. In the global fertilizer export market, Russian ammonia fertilizer accounts for 23%, urea 14%, potassium carbonate 21%, and phosphate 10%. According to the World Bank 's fertilizer price index, the price of fertilizer increased by 10% in the first quarter of 2022. It should be noted that the price rose by 80% last year. It is predicted that the overall price of fertilizer will increase by 70% by the end of this year compared with last year.
In April, EU banned the import of fertilizer from Russia, and ships flying the Russian flag could not dock at EU ports. In addition, in March, the EU also sanctioned another important potassium carbonate exporter, Belarus . All of these actions, in the view of Dr. Brian Baker, former president of the International Organic Agricultural Movement Alliance, seriously affects fertilizer prices. He believes that the new coronavirus has caused great chaos to the international fertilizer industry supply chain, and the Russian-Ukraine war and the ensuing sanctions have made all this worse. Dr. Dora Dexler, director of the Hungarian Institute of Organic Agriculture, also believes that the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and sanctions have caused the prices of inorganic fertilizers to soar.
Sanctions and wars make people realize that agriculture and food localization are crucial and cannot rely on fragile national supply chains. The ban on exports of fertilizers will soon affect global food prices and supply. Lack of fertilizer, and crops that rely heavily on fertilizer, such as corn and potato, will significantly reduce yields. At the same time, Russia and Ukraine are also traditional major food exporters. Affected by the conflict, the food exports of the two countries will also be greatly affected, which will undoubtedly further cause fluctuations in international food prices.
However, as one of the initiators of sanctions against Russia, the United States has exempted Russia from importing fertilizers. According to data from the U.S. Treasury Department, the United States imported about $1.28 billion in Russian fertilizer in 2021, but researchers believe that American farmers still have to face the surge in fertilizer prices because the global fertilizer industry is so closely linked. In fact, agriculture in many countries in South America also relies heavily on fertilizers from Russia. In March, theresa Christina Diaz, former Minister of Agriculture of Brazil, said Brazil, together with several South American countries such as Argentina , Bolivia , Chile , and FAO to the Food and Agriculture Organization for exemption of sanctions on Russian fertilizers.
With the soaring prices of grain and fertilizers and the chaos in the supply chain, the word "famine" has begun to appear frequently in media headlines. In fact, the farmers in Africa are the most affected. African countries have long purchased large quantities of food and fertilizer from Russia and Ukraine, and now food exports are frustrated and fertilizer embargoes are doomed to put African farmers at risk of hunger. The solution given by some agricultural experts is to develop local agriculture, shorten the supply chain, and secondly, to develop organic agriculture. In the long run, these plans may be possible, but far-reaching water cannot quench near thirst. This requires cooperation between countries around the world, especially European and American countries, to consider the indirect harm caused by sanctions, and the key to avoiding a great famine is in their hands.
