Pricey food, precious forests: The invasion of Ukraine, global food security and deforestation

The document warns that the global food price surge, driven by climate events and the invasion of Ukraine, is being used by industry actors and politicians to push for the deregulation of forests to increase agricultural production. It argues that deforestation actually undermines food security by disrupting weather cycles and increasing climate shocks, citing examples of crop losses in Brazil and Canada. The author urges the UK, EU, and forest-rich nations to maintain and strengthen due diligence requirements to prevent businesses from profiting from deforestation.

• The invasion of Ukraine has intensified a global food price surge already driven by the COVID-19 pandemic, soil degradation, and climate-related extreme weather. Russia and Ukraine together provide more than 25% of global wheat exports, and Russia is the world's leading producer of fertilizer.
• There is a risk that policymakers and industry actors in Europe and Brazil will use the Ukraine crisis to justify the destruction of climate-critical forests for industrial agriculture. The document notes that Brazilian President Bolsonaro has suggested that land rights and environmental laws hinder Brazilian food security in the context of the invasion.
• Deforestation worsens food insecurity by disrupting local weather cycles and causing droughts. For example, clearing natural vegetation in Brazil is estimated to cost soybean farmers over $3 billion annually in lost productivity, and a severe 2021 drought in Brazil impacted soy and sugar beet yields.
• The document highlights the risk of investors turning to forest-risk commodities as substitutes for Ukrainian products, specifically mentioning palm oil from Indonesia or Papua New Guinea as a potential substitute for sunflower oil, which could increase deforestation and human rights abuses.
• The author emphasizes the necessity of upcoming UK and EU regulations to prohibit the sale of products sourced from deforested land, urging governments to resist industry calls to halt environmental legislation.

APA

Global Witness (n.d.). Pricey food, precious forests: The invasion of Ukraine, global food security and deforestation. https://globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/forests/pricey-food-precious-forests-the-invasion-of-ukraine-global-food-security-and-deforestation/

Chicago

Global Witness. Pricey food, precious forests: The invasion of Ukraine, global food security and deforestation. n.d. https://globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/forests/pricey-food-precious-forests-the-invasion-of-ukraine-global-food-security-and-deforestation/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Global Witness |title=Pricey food, precious forests: The invasion of Ukraine, global food security and deforestation |url=https://globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/forests/pricey-food-precious-forests-the-invasion-of-ukraine-global-food-security-and-deforestation/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{globalwitnessndpricey, author = {{Global Witness}}, title = {{Pricey food, precious forests: The invasion of Ukraine, global food security and deforestation}}, publisher = {Global Witness}, url = {https://globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/forests/pricey-food-precious-forests-the-invasion-of-ukraine-global-food-security-and-deforestation/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }