Summary The coronavirus pandemic and consequent economic disruption have tested the resilience of the North American food system. The poorest Americans were put at risk of food deprivation as their incomes fell. Disruptions reverberated through the food supply chain as the pandemic escalated; meatpacking plants became disease hotspots. The Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) provided US$ 16 billion of aid to farmers and ranchers based on falling prices. CFAP added to the counter‐cyclical safety‐net programmes legislated in 2018 and ad hoc support authorised for two years by the Trump administration. The CFAP support is reasonable in the context of the pandemic‐related economic collapse, but also raises concern about increased support tied to market conditions and current production, including support linked to unilateral US trade policies that have invoked retaliation by trading partners. As of early June, the hopeful scenario was that the worst challenges to the food system had passed. Grain and livestock inventories were relatively high and spring planting intentions were strong, but supply constraints in North America or internationally remained a risk. The pandemic has underscored the inherent fragility of an integrated world and the high stakes in the debate about globalisation that will inevitably follow.

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Covid-19 大流行期间北美食品系统的弹性和脆弱性

总结 冠状病毒大流行和随之而来的经济破坏考验了北美食品系统的弹性。最贫穷的美国人因收入下降而面临食物匮乏的风险。随着大流行的升级，中断在食品供应链中引起反响；肉类加工厂成为疾病热点。冠状病毒食品援助计划 (CFAP) 基于价格下跌向农民和牧场主提供了 160 亿美元的援助。CFAP 加入了 2018 年立法的反周期安全网计划和特朗普政府授权两年的临时支持。在与大流行相关的经济崩溃的背景下，CFAP 的支持是合理的，但也引发了对与市场状况和当前生产相关的支持增加的担忧，包括与引发贸易伙伴报复的美国单边贸易政策相关的支持。截至 6 月初，希望的情况是粮食系统面临的最严峻挑战已经过去。粮食和牲畜库存相对较高，春季播种意向强烈，但北美或国际供应紧张仍然存在风险。这场大流行病凸显了一体化世界的内在脆弱性，以及随之而来的全球化辩论的重大利害关系。