Impacts of Russia-Ukraine conflict can be felt in Iowa

Iowa (KCRG) - The Russia-Ukraine conflict has caused commodity prices to increase as global markets assess the current situation. This means you will likely be paying more at the gas pump and to heat your home.

“The idea is that anytime there’s a war or something like this going on, we tend to see commodity prices rise because of the risk involved because of that conflict,” said Chad Hart, Iowa State University economics professor.

For those in the agriculture business, the already high fertilizer prices could continue to climb. Russia is one of the world’s largest exporters of fertilizer.

“The idea is that that area that produces a lot of natural gas, worldwide, so that conflict is going to drive up those natural gas prices. And that’s going to mean higher fertilizer prices, as we look down the line because of the conflict.”

But experts say the Russia Ukraine conflict won’t be felt too hard in grocery store prices.

“For every dollar we spend at the grocery store, roughly about 15 cents, goes back to buy the products on the farm. So yeah, the commodity prices matter. But there are a lot of other things that add to that grocery store price,” said Hart. “As the Russia Ukraine conflict goes on, it will actually really have a very small impact on what we pay for bread in the grocery store.”

It’s unclear how long this situation will last, so the impact on prices in the long term is unknown.

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