During his press conference at USDA’s Ag Outlook Forum, Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack said it was “too early to tell” what the impacts will be from the Russian invasion, pointing to comments from USDA Chief Economist Seth Meyer that noted the importance Russia and Ukraine play in the global grain trade.
“It will take time for the impact of this to be felt,” Vilsack said.
He also downplayed the potential for the situation to affect food prices for U.S. consumers, saying it was “still a little too early” to speculate on impacts in Europe. But he did not see a situation where “American consumers on the food side are necessarily going see the kind of impact and effect that the European consumers will see.”
Vilsack acknowledged that sanctions against Russia could have an impact. He explained it depends on how Russia responds and what “disruptions, if any, occur,” and what steps the U.S. might take to “provide help and assistance.”
He warned ag input suppliers not to take “unfair advantage” of the situation.
