Mapping Asia's Food Trade and the Impact of COVID-19

This report examines the evidence so far on the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak on the food industry and supply chain across the Asia-Pacific region. The paper marks the first in a three-paper series looking at the issue, and covers early evidence on latest trade flows, price reactions, and government policy responses.
Despite Asia’s food supply chain becoming increasing integrated and imported inputs playing a crucial role in domestic food manufacturing across many of the region’s key economies, a report by Oxford Economics suggests the supply chain has remained resilient during the COVID-19 outbreak, with limited evidence of specific impacts from the pandemic.
Our report titled “Mapping Asia’s food trade and the impact of Covid-19” commissioned by Food Industry Asia (FIA), the regional association representing Asia’s food and beverage (F&B) industry, found the pandemic and associated lockdown measures had not translated to supply shortages or price pressures, as yet.
FIA and Oxford Economics will be partnering on two subsequent reports. Report 2 in the series will quantify in more depth the key trading relationships making up the pan Asia food supply chain and assess the evolving evidence on price pressures along the supply chain, and report 3 will review the outlook for the sector’s recovery, as well looking at other economic risk factors that form part of the post-COVID landscape.
Our economic consulting team are world leaders in quantitative economic analysis, working with clients around the globe and across sectors to build models, forecast markets and evaluate interventions using state-of-the art techniques. Lead consultants on this project were:
