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Date Published: 25/02/2022
ARCHIVED - Serious concern over consequence of Russia-Ukraine war on Spanish agriculture
Spain imports the vast majority of its cereal products from Ukraine
As the war between Russia and Ukraine wages on, the loss of human life is of course the most serious consequence, but the impact on the economy, which has barely begun recovering from the coronavirus pandemic, can’t be ignored. President Sánchez has revealed that he has a contingency plan in place if oil and gas prices continue to rise, but supply chain experts have warned that the Spanish agricultural sector will likely bear the brunt.
Ukraine is essentially Europe’s breadbasket and the world’s leading producer of sunflower seeds, flour and oil, with wheat and barley being their main exports. Spain as a nation is dangerously deficient in cereals and routinely imports almost 30% of the corn it needs from Ukraine. In addition, 60% of our foreign purchases of sunflower oil also come from Ukraine, as well as 17% of wheat, 31% of vegetable oil cakes and 15.4% of grain legumes.
A good portion of these imports goes towards feeding Spain’s livestock and a supply crisis will hike up the price of these raw materials, which could deal a fatal blow to the country’s already struggling farmers who are being heavily affected by the current drought.
The availability of fertilisers is also expected to be seriously affected by trade with Ukraine, and this will cause further price increases. And that’s not all: sharply rising prices of crude oil and oil derivatives as a result of the Russian invasion will very likely prompt shipping companies into price hikes, so that even if grains are available, they could simply become unaffordable.
For these reasons, the agricultural sector has urgently called on President Sánchez to launch a Shock Plan to save the industry.
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