Heat wave scorches India’s wheat crop, snags export plans
An unusually early, record-shattering heat wave in India has reduced wheat yields, raising questions about how the country will balance its domestic needs with ambitions to increase exports and make up for shortfalls due to Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Gigantic landfills in India’s capital New Delhi have caught fire in recent weeks. Schools in eastern Indian state Odisha have been shut for a week and in neighboring West Bengal, schools are stocking up on oral rehydration salts for kids.
On Tuesday, Rajgarh, a city of over 1.5 million people in central India, was the country’s hottest, with daytime temperatures peaking at 46.5 degrees Celsius (114.08 Fahrenheit). Temperatures breached the 45 C (113 F) mark in nine other cities.
Jeera price surges 72% year-on-year to record high
Jeera prices have surged an unprecedented 72% year-on-year to a record high because of lower production of the spice in the country, partly because many farmers shifted to more lucrative commodities.
The low yield in India will affect the global prices as the country is the largest producer of jeera or cumin in the world, said traders.
Prices of the commodity hovered over Rs 215 per kg in April at Unjha mandi in Gujarat, which records the largest volume of trade.
Heat to scorch India’s wheat supplies, adding food-shortage worries to world
A blistering heat wave has scorched wheat fields in India, reducing yields in the second-biggest grower and damping expectations for exports that the world is relying on to alleviate a global shortage.
Temperatures soared in March to the highest ever for the month on record going back to 1901, shriveling India’s wheat crop during a crucial growth period. That’s spurring estimates that yields have slumped 10% to 50% this season, according to almost two dozen farmers and local government officials surveyed by Bloomberg.
This could be a serious blow to global wheat supplies after Russia’s war in Ukraine upended trade flows out of the critical Black Sea breadbasket region, prompting warnings of food shortages. Importing nations are looking to India for supplies, with the first shipment being prepared for top buyer Egypt. Lower production would jeopardize India’s ability to make up for the shortfall.
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