World: Grain trade disruption could cause severe repercussions on dietary energy and protein consumption in the Middle East

Due to inadequate arable lands, water scarcity, evolving dietary habits, climate change, and ongoing geopolitical conflicts, the region faces significant food security challenges. These are exacerbated by rapid population growth, which has exceeded 2% annually and is higher than the global average for middle-income countries (1.3%). Consequently, MENA countries are highly dependent on imports, especially of grains, which account for most of the supply. This causes the region to be vulnerable to trade disruptions, food shortages, and price fluctuations. Recent studies have shown that the reliance on imports is expected to increase in the years ahead. However, there is a lack of research on the quantitative link between imported grains and dietary energy and protein supply, as well as the impact of trade disruption on diets. As such, a group of researchers utilised statistics from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on the average dietary and nutritional value of grains to ...