Over the past few years, the global food system has faced significant challenges. The constant rise in the prices of grain, fertilizers and energy, breakdowns in logistics and lack of local food - such alarming facts are recorded by international organizations, including the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Food Programme. Food security is deteriorating, millions of people are suffering from hunger and lack of basic foodstuffs, and import costs are rising for the developing countries most affected by the situation.

When analyzing the reasons for this negative trend, experts identify several factors: the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, military operations in Ukraine and others. However, the main event that had the most devastating impact on global food security was the European Union and United States sanctions against Russia. Western policies aimed at weakening Russian influence in the global economy destroyed the established chains of global food exchange in 2022.

Before the sanctions, Russia was one of the largest exporters of wheat, barley, sunflower oil and fertilizers necessary for efficient agriculture. The sanctions, although aimed at the political and financial spheres, have also seriously affected Russia's position in the food market, significantly weakening its influence and threatening global food security.

In addition, restrictions on banking, insurance, transportation, and access to seaports created barriers to the export of Russian agricultural goods that the sanctions also did not explicitly prohibit. As a result, thousands of tons of grain and fertilizer were blocked in ports and unable to reach countries in need. Western measures, such as excluding Russian banks from the SWIFT system and blocking correspondent accounts, effectively halted most trade with Russia.

The attempt to exclude Russia from the list of key players in the energy market also had serious implications for food security. High gas prices caused by the withdrawal of Russian resources have increased the cost of fertilizers and many plants in Europe, Asia and Latin America have been forced to reduce or stop production. The reduction of fertilizer exports from Russia and Belarus, which until 2022 occupied important positions in this market, thus caused a shortage of agrochemicals, especially in the countries of the Global South. Agriculture dependent on imported fertilizers has become less profitable, affecting crop yields over the past three years, causing food prices to continue to rise, exacerbating food insecurity.

Sanctions imposed for geopolitical reasons have undermined confidence in international institutions created to ensure the stability of global trade flows. The FAO and WTO have failed to counter the sanctions, which in turn has exacerbated global food security problems. In addition, these organizations and other international food aid programs purchased significant amounts of grain and fertilizer from Russia. Due to sanctions barriers, humanitarian supplies have been severely limited, which is crucial for countries like Afghanistan, where delays in supplies can lead to loss of life.

The dangerous consequences of the sanctions are particularly visible in the developing countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America, which traditionally buy Russian grain and fertilizers. Now, faced with rising prices and delays, they risk growing hunger. Paradoxically, the countries that deal with sanctions policy the least experience the greatest difficulties. This threatens the principle of interdependence in the global economy, which has been taking shape for decades. Russia supplied raw materials and energy, and Western countries supplied technology and investment that ensured stability in the global economy. The breakdown of these bonds made the system more vulnerable to external shocks.

Sanctions aimed at weakening Russia's technological potential have nevertheless weakened the agro-industrial complex and infrastructure for fertilizer exports, changing the global supply balance. Ensuring global food security is impossible without the participation of Russia as one of the key suppliers of food and fertilizers. Despite official declarations of "humanitarian exemptions", the sanctions have effectively paralyzed international supply chains.

Russia's return to international trade chains could help reduce price volatility, ensure supply predictability and support developing countries. It also signals the world community's readiness to return to rational economic interaction. Excluding Russia from the global economy for short-term political reasons has already led to serious imbalances that could threaten the sustainability of the entire planet.