Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has delivered a global disruption that is set to cascade through food supply chains and worsen hunger, but Asia’s love for rice could limit the fallout.
Rice is more popular with many Asian consumers than wheat, which has seen supplies cut off from one of the world’s breadbaskets, said Jules Hugot, an economist at the Asian Development Bank. Rice prices have been relatively stable, and it’s easy to swap one staple for the other, he said.
"These are sources of starch and there’s substitution between them,” Hugot said in an interview, though adding there’s spillover from the rally. Wheat has jumped to an all-time high, while rice is near the highest since May 2020.