Grain prices dropped 6% last Friday, July 22, signaling hope of softening food prices. But the ink had barely dried on the agreement signed by UN Chief Antonio Guterres and Turkey’s President Recep Erdogan, to reopen Ukrainian ports for grain exports when these hopes were dashed. The light went out on Mr Guterres statement that the agreement was ‘a beacon on the Black Sea’, when Russian missiles ravaged the port of Odessa, early on Saturday. The industry returned to that hard place and high prices. But shipments are expected to begin within the next few days. There is hope yet!