Misleading: Russia Restricts Grain Exports
The Claim
The Russian Agriculture Ministry announced that it will be suspending its grain export due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Emerging story
Social media users on Facebook and Twitter posted about the Russian Agriculture Ministry’s decision on suspending grains indicating that the decision will affect Egypt, as its grain stocks are imported from Russia. @dC00R, an Egyptian Twitter user, expressed her concern after the decision. Her tweet received 588 retweets and 3.5K likes.
Misbarโs Analysis
The claim is misleading. International newspapers and agencies reported that the Russian measures came following their cautions during the coronavirus crisis where they are working to meet their internal needs of stockpiles of agriculture and food products for three months before the new grain harvest season begins.
Reports reveal that Russia took the decision of reducing exports, not stopping them.
A report published on March 25 by the British Daily indicated that Russia stopped manufacturing grain, oatmeal flakes, and rice starting on March 20. The suspension lasted for 10 days. Further, the halting decision didn’t include ordinary grain exports, including wheat.
Russia is known as the world’s largest grain exporter.
On March 27, Reuters revealed a proposal presented by the Russian Ministry of Agriculture to limit grain exports, including wheat, to seven million tons for April-June because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Kxan reported that the Russian Minister stated that the measure is to ensure the necessary volume of grain for the domestic market, to prevent a jump in prices for main crops, and to help mediate consumer prices for end products such as flour, cereals, bakery and dairy.
The minister also confirmed that they are working on moving to the new season of harvest with a stock of at least 17.5 million tons to guarantee Russian food security and to maintain the necessary supplies inside the country for three months. The volume of exports of grains should not exceed seven million tons. This denies the circulating news about the Russian decision to completely halt its exports.
