In an interview with the "SRF" program 10 to 10, Ritter makes it clear that he does not expect the price of bread to rise sharply due to the conflict in Ukraine. Nevertheless, he calls for more cereals to be grown in Switzerland in the future. This is mainly due to solidarity with poorer countries: «I believe it is important that we take responsibility. On the one hand, for people in countries with little purchasing power, who can hardly afford the bread. We therefore do not need to stock up using large quantities of world market goods, but can also ensure our food with our own production.

Rising prices lead to hunger and revolt

The rise in the price of wheat reached a peak in the course of the conflict in Ukraine. As the "SRF" shows in various articles, this is felt mainly by poorer people in the countries of the South. For example in East Africa: Almost 90 percent of the wheat in East African countries comes from Russia or Ukraine. In Kenya, wheat flour became a quarter more expensive within a few weeks. People who live in cities and have to spend around half their income on food are hit particularly hard. However, countries in North Africa and the Middle East are also severely affected. Both Egypt and Tunisia import huge quantities of wheat from Ukraine. In Egypt, where the price of bread has been heavily subsidized for years, rising wheat prices threaten to cause hunger riots similar to those at the beginning of the Arab Spring.

In the Middle East, countries such as Lebanon and Syria source large quantities of wheat from Ukraine and Russia. Because of wars, corruption, droughts and inflation, many people in these countries have been barely able to afford bread for years. The rising prices of wheat on the world market force the governments of these countries to make serious decisions: An even stronger subsidy of the bread will tear huge holes into the state coffers. Rising bread prices, on the other hand, threaten to trigger social unrest.