Coronavirus could worsen hunger in the developing world

• Closing schools means many children miss out on their only hot meal.

• Quarantine regulations are disrupting supply chains.

• Governments must do everything in their power to keep trade routes open.

Even as it takes its distressing toll, the current pandemic has generated a flurry of less sombre memes. Some of these involve people stuck at home, unable to tear themselves from the pantry, piling on the pounds. But for many in the developing world, the lockdowns mean the exact opposite: they cannot get anywhere near the pantry.The concern is not all about ready consumables: transport constraints can drastically affect the supply of fertilizers, veterinary drugs and other agricultural inputs. The shuttered restaurants and less frequent shopping trips are meanwhile curbing demand and will ultimately depress output. In the West, reduced labour mobility threatens to leave some seasonal crops rotting in the fields and deprive producers of their livelihoods. In Africa, during the Ebola crisis, food production plummeted by 12%.

Much like in the public health sphere, where the virus’s impact explodes into view weeks after the initial contagion, the cumulative effects of such market disruption, while not dramatic yet, will likely become apparent as early as this month. Yes, well-nourished citizens in wealthy countries may weather a couple of months without some fresh or imported produce. But in the developing world, a child malnourished at a young age will be stunted for life.