In a recent UN article, it was reported that so far the food supply and markets have been stable during the pandemic, and disruptions due to COVID-19 were minimal, but this could change for the worse very fast if anxiety-driven panic causes major food importers and bulk-buyers to begin ordering more products due to the fear of having a shortage.

This would lead to a disastrous situation where there would only be food available in areas these foods have been imported to, and not enough elsewhere, accelerating the issue of food insecurity globally during this pandemic. There is already a disproportionate impact on food security, as lower-income families are affected more, as more of their paychecks go into buying food. If panic-buying by major food importers ensue, this would drive up the prices of key foods such as wheat and grain products, and this would affect those that are already food insecure the most. The UN has reported that many developing countries, due to the fact that they are the most dependent on imports would be affected the most.

It is key that everyone has access to a healthy diet and food throughout the global fight against COVID-19, and one of the ways to mitigate that would be to no not panic-buy, starting at the importer level, but as individual consumers as well. We must all be mindful of each other and only buy what you need, so other people have the ability to have access to valuable resources as well. Maintaining a steady global food chain is a key focus during this pandemic, as a loss in this could prove to be catastrophic. We could all achieve this by not ensuing in panic buying or hoarding behavior!

Original Article: https://news.un.org/en/story/2020/04/1061032