Russia's invasion of Ukraine may cause havoc for wheat-importing Mideast nations

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Russia's invasion of Ukraine could cause havoc for wheat-importing nations in the Mideast.

Bread is more than just a staple of the Egyptian diet. In Cairo, the small round loaves are called aish or "life."

Egyptians consume bread at twice the global average. To support this love of aish, they import more wheat than any other nation in the world. And recently, 85% of Egypt's wheat imports have been coming from Russia and Ukraine.

This week, Egypt's Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly called a special cabinet session to consider how the Russian invasion of Ukraine may disrupt bread flour supplies and drive up prices in the most populous country in the Arab world.

Many other nations in the region share Egypt's fondness for bread — and its concerns about disruptions to global grain markets. The Middle East is heavily dependent on food imports.