The flash drought and its associated heat wave that affected western Russia in the summer of 2010 had significant cascading agricultural and socioeconomic impacts. Drought indicators sensitive to soil moisture and evapotranspiration (ET) showed that the flash drought began in June 2010, then intensified rapidly and expanded to cover much of western Russia. By early July, almost all of the major wheat producing regions of Russia were experiencing extreme water stress to the winter and spring wheat crops. The timing of the onset of the flash drought was particularly devastating as the period of most rapid intensification overlapped with the flowering stage for both the winter and spring wheat crops. As a result, wheat yields in Russia were reduced by over 70 percent in top wheat producing oblasts and total wheat production was reduced by 20 million metric tons (MT) compared to the previous seasons. In fulfillment of its recently adopted Food Security Doctrine, the Russian government banned the export of wheat in early August 2010 to preserve wheat for its own consumption. Further compounding matters on a global scale, the significant reduction in wheat production in Russia coincided with wheat production issues in places like western Australia, which led to a large drop in global wheat stocks. The sharp drop in global wheat stocks coincided with a rapid increase in wheat prices across the globe. The rapid increase in wheat prices, partly resulting from the rapid intensification of drought in Russia, led to increased prices for wheat flour and bread in many countries throughout the world. This ultimately led to an increase in poverty and civil unrest in countries like Mozambique and Egypt with a history of inequality and poverty.

2010 年夏季影响俄罗斯西部的突发干旱及其相关的热浪对农业和社会经济产生了重大的连锁影响。对土壤水分和蒸散量 (ET) 敏感的干旱指标显示，突发干旱始于 2010 年 6 月，然后迅速加剧并扩大到俄罗斯西部的大部分地区。到 7 月初，几乎所有俄罗斯主要小麦产区的冬小麦和春小麦作物都面临极度缺水。由于冬小麦和春小麦作物的最快速集约化时期与开花期重叠，因此突发干旱发生的时间尤其具有破坏性。其结果，与前一季相比，俄罗斯小麦产量最高的州的小麦产量减少了 70% 以上，小麦总产量减少了 2000 万公吨 (MT)。为履行其最近通过的粮食安全学说，俄罗斯政府于 2010 年 8 月上旬禁止出口小麦，以保存小麦供自己消费。在全球范围内进一步加剧问题的是，俄罗斯小麦产量的大幅减少与澳大利亚西部等地的小麦产量问题同时发生，导致全球小麦库存大幅下降。全球小麦库存急剧下降的同时，全球小麦价格迅速上涨。小麦价格快速上涨，部分原因是俄罗斯干旱迅速加剧，导致世界上许多国家小麦面粉和面包的价格上涨。这最终导致莫桑比克和埃及等有着不平等和贫困历史的国家的贫困和内乱加剧。