Amid the conflict in the Middle East, fertilizer disruptions, and rising energy prices, the Russian Security Council urges BRICS to form joint food stocks. The relevance of the Russian Security Council’s proposal is backed by numbers: fresh calculations from Visual Capitalist show that no country in the world can fully provide itself with all necessary products. The only exception is Guyana, which produces all 7 food groups (from grains to meat and vegetables).
Among BRICS countries and their neighbors, the most resilient are:
— China and Vietnam – 6 out of 7 groups (only dairy missing),
— Brazil, Russia, Argentina – 5 groups.
At the same time, even large agricultural economies like the US and Canada cover only 4 groups – they depend on imports of fruits and vegetables.
The least protected in terms of food security are the countries of the Middle East and North Africa – they face acute water scarcity (less than 2% of global renewable resources while having 6% of the population):
— Saudi Arabia (3 food groups out of 7),
— Egypt (3),
— Ethiopia (2),
— Kuwait (1),
— UAE (0),
— Qatar (0).
