Price volatility in Afghanistan's wheat market

Wheat is a key staple food in Afghanistan, accounting for over half the caloric intake of the population. Although Afghanistan imports wheat and flour from a number of neighboring countries, Pakistan tends to supply more than half of these imports. Afghanistan's food supply network broke down in 2008 due to a confluence of events, including shortfalls in Pakistani and Afghan wheat production and Pakistan's bans on wheat and flour exports. Substantial price hikes were needed to bring increased flour shipments from Kazakhstan through the inefficient transport system from the North. Afghanistan will remain subject to supply disruptions and price spikes as long as its agricultural production remains highly variable and weak transportation links limit the country's ability to diversify its sources of imported grain. Improvements in infrastructure could enable Afghanistan to diversify its wheat and flour imports and bring in supplies at a lower cost.