Impact of Covid-19 Pandemic on Agrifood System and Global Value Chains (GVCs); Perception of China and the World

Covid-19 is a global public health catastrophe with repercussions for all facets of life. This paper reviewed the impact of Covid-19 on the Agrifood System and Global Value Chains (GVCs) with respect to China and the world. Literature from Peer-reviewed articles, trending news and related authentic online reports was objectively gathered and used in this review. China has been playing a substantial role as both a supply and demand nucleus in traditional trade and simple Agrifood GVC networks. However, the review established that Covid-19 has had a substantial impact on the overall GVCs and the Agrifood system of both China and the world. While the impact on China was obvious through the decline in GDP growth rate in 2020, the decline in Agrifood annual growth and the rampant job losses in the Agrifood sector, its overall economy has been less affected relative to the global economy. This is essentially owing to the Chinese vigorous and effective counter-measures to control the outbreak and ensure food security and economic resilience. We, therefore, concluded that the world should emulate China’s Covid-19 counter-measures. Additionally, determinations to abate the disruption of Covid-19 on GVCs and encourage Agrifood trade can engender both short- and long-term paybacks. Keywords: Covid-19, GVCs, Agrifood System, Agriculture, Trade, Economy, China, World DOI: 10.7176/JESD/12-10-09 Publication date: May 31 st 2021