As with covid and lockdowns, the reaction to the problem can be more harmful to more people than the original problem, in this case the invasion and the sanctions that were the response.
From Fortune, March 30:
Gas in Germany, flour in Greece, sunflower oil in Spain: European countries take steps towards rationing as the war in Ukraine adds to the global supply crunch
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has threatened the supply of critical commodities in Europe and thrown global supply chains, which were already struggling amid COVID-19, into complete chaos.
As a result, the prices of everything from wheat to oil have soared, leading to multi-decade high inflation rates in places like Germany and Spain. The supply crunch in Europe is now so bad it’s causing governments to begin laying the groundwork for rationing, with some stores already limiting supplies.
The German government took the first formal steps toward rationing its natural gas supplies this week as it attempts to wean itself off a decades-long reliance on Russian energy. And in Spain and Greece, supermarkets are rationing food including flour, milk, and sunflower oil.
While current European rationing has largely been preventative, as governments and businesses hope to limit the risk of panic buying and further shortages, Europeans are facing a volatile environment ahead as geopolitical tensions persist and COVID-19 lockdowns continue abroad.
German gasGermany pulled the first lever on its three stage emergency plan to conserve its natural gas supply on Wednesday, fearing a potential showdown with Russia over gas flows....
Here's Reuters via US News & World Report, March 24, with some earlier commentary:
Greek Supermarkets Limit Flour, Sunflower Oil Purchases as Customers Hoard
The fact that Greece is already rationing flour is not a good sign for the people across the Med in Egypt and the Maghreb.
And now there is political trouble in Tunisia, one of the few countries that actually had food riots during the Arab Spring (the rest were attempts at Color Revolutions by Western intelligence services, food prices being the ostensible cause but regime change being the goal, with some awful effects in Libya, Syria and Egypt - reversed in the latter when the U.S.-favored Muslim Brotherhood were kicked out in their turn)
