Rome, Italy — The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) have issued a stark warning of multiple, looming food crises, driven by conflict, climate shocks, the fallout from the novel coronavirus pandemic, and massive public debt burdens — exacerbated by the ripple effects of the war in Ukraine which has pushed food and fuel prices to accelerate in many nations across the globe.

These shocks hit in contexts already characterised by rural marginalisation and fragile agrifood systems.

The ‘Hunger Hotspots – FAO-WFP early warnings on acute food insecurity’ report calls for urgent humanitarian action in 20 ‘hunger hot spots’ where acute hunger is expected to worsen from June-September 2022 – to save lives and livelihoods, and prevent famine.

The report warns that the war in Ukraine has exacerbated the already steadily rising food and energy prices worldwide, which are already affecting economic stability across all regions. The effects are expected to be particularly acute where economic instability and spiralling prices combine with drops in food production due to climate shocks such as recurrent droughts or flooding.

“We are deeply concerned about the combined impacts of overlapping crises jeopardising people’s ability to produce and access foods, pushing millions more into extreme levels of acute food insecurity,” said FAO Director General QU Dongyu. “We are in a race against time to help farmers in the most affected countries, including by rapidly increasing potential food production and boosting their resilience in the face of challenges.”

“We’re facing a perfect storm that is not just going to hurt the poorest of the poor – it’s also going to overwhelm millions of families who until now have just about kept their heads above water,” warned WFP Executive Director David Beasley.