World Bank tells G20: Pandemic threatens food security of poor, stop hoarding food

The poorest countries in the world face food insecurity and malnutrition due to the pandemic, a drop in foreign exchange earnings, export restrictions on food and the breakdown of supply chains, a senior World Bank official said on Tuesday.

Mari Pangestu, managing director for development policy, underscored the need for global cooperation to avert food crises in the most vulnerable countries in remarks to an online meeting of agriculture ministers from the Group of 20 major economies.

"Refrain from imposing export restrictions and avoid unnecessary import barriers and build up of stocks," she said, adding that global grain production and stocks were at near all-time highs, making restrictions unnecessary.