Ukraine invasion more than doubles some Syrian food prices: report

Food prices in some Syrian regions are up by as much as 67 percent amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to a report. 

The report from Mercy Corps out Wednesday said that in addition to the spikes in food costs, Syria has seen shortages in sunflower oil, sugar and flour. 

Prior to the invasion, Syria, which had over 4 million food insecure residents in its northwest region, had already seen an 86 percent increase in the cost of food between January 2021 and January 2022, Mercy Corps said. 

“Even before the war in Ukraine, bread was already becoming increasingly unaffordable,” Kieren Barnes, the Syria country director for Mercy Corps, said in a statement.

Earlier this week, Cindy McCain, who serves as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture, said “Putin’s war is forcing us to take from the hungry to feed the starving.” 

“Rising prices force hard decisions to cut rations in some of the most desperate humanitarian crises in the world, including Afghanistan and Yemen,” she added. 

McCain also referred to Ukraine as “one of the major bread baskets of the world,” as the country has served as a major wheat provider for the U.N. World Food Program (WFP).

Internationally, food prices have also hit record highs amid Moscow’s attack on Ukraine. 

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization’s Food Price Index, which measures the change in international food costs monthly for different commodities, rose 17.9 points between February and March, the highest levels seen in the index’s history.