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Corn prices hit nine-year high, partly due to Ukraine war
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Cost of Latin America’s staple tortillas and tamales jumps
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Some 267 million people face food poverty in the region
By Diana Baptista
MEXICO CITY, June 17 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Business at Marco Antonio Jimenez’s taco stall in Mexico City was just starting to recover from repeated COVID-19 lockdowns when global corn prices skyrocketed, sinking his sales once again.
The surge in the cost of corn – which is used to make Mexico’s staple tortilla – forced Jimenez to raise the price of his tacos by two pesos (10 U.S. cents), but he said many of his mainly low-income customers could no longer afford the 20-peso snack.
“When the price of tortillas increases, I have to increase the price of tacos,” Jimenez, 26, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
“Many people prefer not to buy anything anymore,” he said.
The conflict in Ukraine has hit global grains and fertilizer supplies, contributing to a jump of almost 20% in global corn prices between February and March and taking them to a nine-year high in April, according to World Bank data.
