Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky warned Monday May 2, 2022 that the Russian blockade imposed on Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea could lead to the loss of tens of millions of tonnes of cereals, which could trigger a food crisis “likely to affect Europe, Africa and Asia.
“Russia, which controls the Black Sea, lets neither enter the ships,” said Volodymyr Zelensky during an interview with a foreign media, warning against a cereal disaster.
Ukraine is one of the main producers and global exporters of agricultural products, in particular cereals. Tunisia imports large quantities to this country at war.
“Tunisia imports almost 50% of its cereal product needs, a rate likely to reach 75% in the coming years, with the deterioration of climatic conditions,” said the National Observatory of Agriculture (ONAGRI), in a note published Wednesday, April 20, 2022, on the cereal sector.
In the aftermath of the Russian invasion in Ukraine, the Tunisian authorities hastened to reassure the population. Hamed Dali, director general of the National Observatory for Agriculture at the Ministry of Agriculture, had said that Tunisia had already completed its necessary cereal orders, well before the start of the war in Ukraine.
He said that cereal stocks are sufficient until next June and that Tunisia will not face any lack until the harvest season in the summer.
Large importer of cereals, our country received 3.7 million tonnes during the commercial year 2021-2022. Among the main cereal suppliers for Tunisia are Ukraine and Russia.
