What caused the 2022 food crisis?

Gareth Price examines the key factors contributing to the food crisis in Southeast Asia.

Explainer Video Updated 14 October 2022 2 minute watch

What caused the 2022 food crisis?

— Video of Gareth Price discussing the 2022 food crisis.

Dr Gareth Price

Former Senior Research Fellow, Asia-Pacific Programme

Gareth Price, senior research fellow in the Asia-Pacific programme outlines the various overlapping and cascading risks which have turned into a global crisis.

He talks about how COVID-19 has caused problems with supply chains and imported labour which has affected harvesting the crops in Southeast Asia, alongside existing regional problems related to climate change, famine, and civil war.

In developed countries, food availability is there but the cost has risen. but in poorer countries, there it are food shortages because the food isn’t available.

He says that, according to the World Food Programme, more than 800 million people stand at risk of malnutrition and 50 million of those are on the edge of famine.