The climate crisis, wars, and trade conflicts are pushing more and more countries to stockpile significant amounts of food products. This trend could prove counterproductive and lead to shortages, even though global production is sufficient, as reported by the “Financial Times” before the outbreak of the war in Iran.
In early 18th-century Finland, the fear of hunger was well-known. Around 1690, a famine caused by an invisible mold had killed a third of the population. Then the Great Northern War with Russia disrupted agricultural activity and everything else [from 1700 to 1721]. So, in 1726, the country began to store a portion of its grain harvests to be able to feed the population in case of emergency.
Three centuries later, this logic is making a big comeback far beyond Finnish borders. Several decades after emptying their reserves and focusing on international trade, governments are increasingly rebuilding emergency supplies.
From Norway to Indonesia, passing through Sweden and India, states are stockpiling increasingly substantial quantities of rice, wheat, or other staple foods, as a form of insurance in a world that appears increasingly unstable.
“After the Cold War, we were the only ones who kept stocks,” pointed out Miika Ilomäki, head of crisis response capacities at the Finnish National Emergency Supply Agency. “Because you never know what might happen.”
The Finnish strategy, long considered conscientious, is now being adopted by many other countries globally.
[Context: The content highlights the historical context of food stockpiling and the current trend among countries to store emergency provisions.]
[Fact Check: The information sources provided by the “Financial Times” are accurate and reputable.]
