Portugal on the brink of a food emergency. The Food Bank fears the total collapse of the system

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The West’s sanctions against Russia and the resulting galloping rise in fuel costs are creating a “food emergency” – not just in Portugal, but because of the country’s dependence on imports, low wages for the vast majority of the population and high poverty rates, Portugal is particularly bad off.

Expresso denounced this spiraling crisis and acknowledged that the situation – the worst, he said, in living memory – has been exacerbated by the drought.

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Arable farmers, meat producers, dairy farmers, bakers, poultry farmers, and all food industries have never seen or experienced anything like this.

– One of the biggest obstacles is that Russia and Ukraine are two of the world’s most important suppliers of grain – “essential for food production.” Now that they are limited, prices are skyrocketing, making any process “more complicated –

With reduced land with viable pastures (due to drought), farmers are forced to buy dry feed for their livestock that they can barely afford.

Worse, the power itself will likely be depleted by April.

Where will the next supply come from?

-According to Expresso, the cost of basic daily food alone will increase by 20-30% in the coming days, “making it unaffordable for thousands of low-income families.”

“Food poverty will reach levels not seen in years,” said Isabel Jonet, longtime president of Banco Alimentar contra a Fome (Food Bank Against Hunger).

Eduardo Oliveira e Sousa, president of CAP – the Portuguese Agricultural Confederation, agreed: “We are in a food emergency like I have never seen before.”

“With the rising cost of energy and diesel, which have worsened since the outbreak of the war, there are farmers who will abandon the production of various seasonal crops such as corn, vegetables and certain fruits in order not to suffer losses,” Expresso added.

“Even then, if prices increase, there will be shortages”. , Oliveira e Sousa warns. “And this will lead to “speculation” and further (price) increases.”

“Stocks of certain products, like flour for (making) pasta, are so low that in a month or two we may have to introduce rationing, as happened in the 1970s” … –

A time that hardly any emigrant will remember, but the point at which Portugal went from the misery of dictatorship to revolution.

THE COST OF MEAT WILL INCREASE BY 30%

Corn is the most important ingredient in animal feed.

-As Jaime Piçarra, secretary-general of the Portuguese Feed Industry Association, told Expresso, “In the last week alone, the price of a ton of corn has risen from €300 to €420. That means feed will go up 25% to 30%. %, which producers cannot afford. The industry could collapse.-

Of course, these increases will affect consumer prices.

Pork is the meat most consumed by the Portuguese. It is likely to become more than 30% more expensive in the coming days, David Neves of the Portuguese Pig Production Association. It was David Neves who explained that the industry only has enough feed until April.

-After that, we will have nothing to feed the animals, which means that people would have to go without meat. If urgent measures are not taken, we will see the return of hunger to Portugal,” he warned. –

Of course, vegetarians and vegans reading this story will see extremely positive aspects in a meat shortage. But even their lifestyle choices will be affected by the rising costs of raw materials, fuel, and food production.

-When it comes to milk, “it’s not even possible to estimate how much prices will go up.

While the price of diesel has already increased by 0.15 cents and is expected to increase by another 0.20 cents, the electricity needed to milk the cows is becoming more expensive every day. costs are rising, feed is becoming more expensive. The situation is becoming dramatic,” added Carlos Neves of the Portuguese Milk Producers Association. –