Pandemic drives up the cost of rice 15 Container shortage adds to supply woes published : 22 Jan 2021 at 12:58 Bags of processed rice are seen arranged inside a warehouse in Benue, Nigeria. (Reuters photo) SINGAPORE/MUMBAI/NAIROBI: Tightening global supplies of basic foodstuffs and disruptions to shipping caused by the coronavirus pandemic are driving up the cost of rice, the most important staple food for billions of people worldwide. Rising food prices are a worrying trend in countries that depend on imports, while the cost of rice is politically sensitive in many parts of Asia and Africa. A spike in the price of the grain led to unrest in several countries during the world food crisis of 2008.