By Canadian Press

Russians targeting Ukrainian food supply, including grain silos and ports: minister

Mar 11, 2022 | 1:41 PM

OTTAWA — Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau says Russian forces are targeting Ukrainians’ food supply, including their stores of grain. 

Bibeau, who today attended an emergency meeting of G7 agriculture ministers, says Ukraine’s minister told them that Russian forces are hitting grain silos, ports and the infrastructure needed to gather and distribute the harvest. 

In an interview, Bibeau condemned the action and says it is a further sign that Russian targets are not just military. 

She says Canada, a big exporter of wheat, is stepping in to help supply grain to the UN World Food Program, as well as supplying humanitarian aid to Ukraine itself.  

Bibeau warned that Canadian farmers could face shortages of fertilizer, which it usually buys from Russia, while consumers should expect a spike in the cost of bread and pasta due to the conflict. 

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Ukraine is one of the world’s largest exporters of wheat and sunflower oil, and many countries in the developing world, including Lebanon and Bangladesh, rely on its wheat exports.  

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 11, 2022.

The Canadian Press