US Envoy McCain Predicts World Food Crisis That Could Kill Millions Of People

The US ambassador to the United Nations agencies in Rome on Tuesday projected that the world is on the path toward a very serious food crisis that could kill millions of people

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 10th May, 2022) The US ambassador to the United Nations agencies in Rome on Tuesday projected that the world is on the path toward a very serious food crisis that could kill millions of people.

"We are extraordinarily close," Cindy McCain said, when asked how close the world is to a food crisis. "We are looking at famine in the large portion of the world. We are also looking at food prices skyrocketing ... We are going to be faced with a very serious crisis, we already are, but this could move into the kinds of things with progressing of famine (that will) not just disrupt the world but it will kill millions of people. That's what we are to be faced with right now."

The time line for the global food crisis depend on whether Russia decided to stop its operation in Ukraine , McCain noted.

According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, Russia and Ukraine were among the top global exporters of various types of staple foods, including wheat and corn, in 2021, while Russia was also a leading exporter of nitrogen fertilizers, the second major supplier of potassium fertilizers and the third largest supplier of phosphorus fertilizers.

The organization has noted that Ukraine's food production is being threatened by factors such as disruption of logistics, loss of access to agricultural lands, labor shortages, damage to crops due to hostilities, and destruction of food system assets and infrastructure.

In addition, Western sanctions on Russia have undermined the country's sales of agricultural products abroad and prompted Moscow to retaliate by freezing fertilizer exports and other relevant products.

As a result, global food prices soared to record highs in March and the International Monetary Fund warned in April that global food prices would likely rise further as a result of the conflict in Ukraine, sanctions against Russia and Belarus as well as climate issues.

On Thursday, the United States appointed agriculturalist Cary Fowler as Special Envoy for Food Security to address recent disruptions to global supply chains caused by climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukraine crisis.�