COVID‐19 policy responses, mobility, and food prices

Abstract

Governments around the world have taken drastic measures to contain the spread of COVID-19. Policy responses to the pandemic could affect local food prices in important ways. In this paper, we hypothesize that food prices in regionally integrated markets are more sensitive to mobility constraints than those in segmented markets. We use World Food Programme price data from 774 retail markets in 44 low and middle-income countries to test whether and how food prices have been affected by the stringency of COVID-19 containment measures. We assess market segmentation based on pre-COVID-19 price data and measure government responses using the Oxford Coronavirus Government Response Tracker. Our results show that more stringent policy responses increase food prices for integrated markets but not for segmented markets. The impact of the stringency of policy responses on food prices seems to be mediated by reductions in mobility and moderated by the dependence of markets on trade before COVID-19.

COVID-19 and distortions in urban food market in India

“…They find that price and price dispersion increased due to the stringent measures in the initial weeks but came down eventually when the lockdown measures were largely removed. Dietrich et al ( 2021 ) find that stringent policy responses increased food prices for integrated markets but not for segmented markets. In the Indian context as well, several studies have analyzed the immediate effects of COVID-19-related disruptions on retail and wholesale markets.…”

Impacts of COVID-19 on Nutritional Intake in Rural China: Panel Data Evidence

“…The channels through which the pandemic affects food and nutrition security comprise all four pillars of food security. Food availability and stability are affected by a lack of workers [16], delays in agricultural work [17], an increase in the price of food and materials [18][19][20][21], and trade restrictions [22]. Moreover, major threats to food access and utilization posed by COVID-19 are the loss of household income, reduced purchasing power [23][24][25], and supply chain disruptions caused by lockdown measures [26][27][28].…”

Consumer food demand in Japan before and after the beginning of COVID-19: AIDS analysis using home scan data

“…In previous literature for economic studies, hedonic price analyses exist that measure the impact of lockdown policies and COVID-19 on food prices (Dietrich et al, 2021;Hillen, 2021;Ruan et al, 2021). The possibility of an impact of COVID-19 on food demand has also been discussed (Cranfield, 2020), but there are few empirical studies of the impact on food demand.…”