Russia Proposes BRICS Joint Food Reserves — SkimNews
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- Alexander Maslennikov, deputy secretary of Russia's Security Council, proposed joint food reserves with BRICS and Eurasian Economic Union members, citing Middle East war risks to global food security as the driving concern.
- The Strait of Hormuz, largely closed since the conflict began, historically handled one-third of global fertilizer trade, and about half of the world's food production depends on fertilizer.
- Maslennikov warned that if the fertilizer shortage persists into early summer, major crop yields could fall by half and the number of hungry people could hit a record 673 million — the sharpest rise in world food inflation in recent years.
- The World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and UN World Food Programme jointly warned last week that Middle East-driven spikes in oil, natural gas, and fertilizer prices will inevitably push up food prices and worsen food insecurity.
- Russia is a major fertilizer producer but lacks the capacity to significantly increase output this year, while targeting a 50% rise in agricultural exports by 2030.
- Putin is set to meet Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto at the Kremlin on Monday, with food security expected on the agenda.
- Egypt, a BRICS member, is the largest importer of Russian wheat, and Russia also exports food to fellow BRICS heavyweights China and India.
Why it matters: Russia is selling itself as the BRICS food security guarantor, but it can't boost fertilizer output this year — just as the Middle East crisis opens export doors to Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Maslennikov projects crop yields halving by early summer and global hunger hitting a record 673 million.
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