Local manufacturers who rely on imported wheat are hoping that Russian President Vladimir Putin will keep his promise of permitting grain exports from the Ukraine soon, a development which they say would impact prices positively.

A baker shared with the Jamaica Observer that wheat prices surged by eight per cent in the first quarter of 2022, and are now the highest he has ever “seen in my life.”

The announcement by Putin last week that exports would once again be permitted from Ukraine, a major source of the grain, is being anticipated by the baker as a possible market mover, in terms of affecting price.

Kyiv has been unable to export grain supplies since the Russian invasion in February of this year, and consequently, food prices have reached heights never before seen.

Even as the Russian leader held out hope of the resumption of grain exports, he also blamed the shift in food supplies and higher pricing on “erroneous economic and financial policies of Western countries”.

On May 28, Russian President Putin told the leaders of France and Germany that Moscow was “ready” to look for ways to ship grain stuck in Ukrainian ports. However, Putin also demanded the West first lift sanctions.

Putin is gambling on a positive response, as the global food crisis escalates.

In a phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron and Germany Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Saturday, reported on by Reuters, Putin said the difficulties in supplying grain to world markets were the result of “erroneous economic and financial policies of Western countries”.

He was quoted as saying, “Russia is ready to help find options for the unhindered export of grain, including the export of Ukrainian grain from the Black Sea ports. An increase in the supply of Russian fertilisers and agricultural products will also help reduce tensions on the global food market, which, of course, will require the removal of the relevant sanctions.”

Notably, the ongoing war being waged by Russia in the Ukraine has resulted in disrupted supplies of fertiliser, wheat and other commodities from the two countries, risking hunger around the world. Russia and Ukraine produce 30 per cent of the global wheat supply.

Macron and Scholz urged Russia to lift the blockade of the Ukrainian port of Odessa to allow the export of grain, the French presidency said.

Locally, managing director of Jamaica Flour Mills Derrick Nembhard is being cautious about forecasting a price increase for flour in the coming weeks, but he is not ruling out the possibility of a rise in the cost of the product.