International food prices have fallen for the third consecutive month, but remain significantly higher than they were a year ago.
The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations gave this updated information in the latest edition of its Food Price Index, which showed reduced international prices for cereals, vegetable oils and sugar in June.
“The barometer for world food commodity prices declined slightly in June for the third consecutive month. The FAO Food Price Index averaged 154.2 points in June 2022, down 2.3 per cent from May,” the FAO reported.
However, the organisation’s chief economist Maximo Torero Cullen noted that “although the FAO Food Price Index dropped in June for the third consecutive month, it remained close to the all-time high of March this year”.
“The factors that drove global prices high in the first place are still at play, especially a strong global demand, adverse weather in some major countries, high production and transportation costs, and supply chain disruptions due to COVID-19, compounded by the uncertainties stemming from the ongoing war in Ukraine,” he explained.
The FAO report said that while the international prices of vegetable oils, cereals and sugar fell in June, dairy and meat prices increased.
“The FAO Cereal Price Index averaged 166.3 points in June, down 4.1 per cent from May, but still 27.6 per cent above its June 2021 value. International wheat prices fell by 5.7 per cent in June but remained 48.5 per cent above their values a year ago,” it said.
“The decline in June was driven by seasonal availability from new harvests in the northern hemisphere, improved crop conditions in some major producing countries, and higher production prospects in the Russian Federation.
“International coarse grain prices also fell by 4.1 per cent but were still up 18.4 per cent from their year-earlier values. World maize prices fell by 3.5 per cent month-on-month due to increased seasonal availabilities in Argentina and Brazil and improved crop conditions in the United States of America.”
The FAO Vegetable Oil Price Index “averaged 211.8 points in June, down 7.6 per cent month-on-month. World palm oil prices declined on seasonally rising output of major producing countries and prospects of increasing supplies from Indonesia”.
“Meanwhile, world sunflower and soy oil prices declined due to subdued global import demand in the wake of rising costs,” the report stated.
“The FAO Sugar Price Index averaged 117.3 points in June, down 2.6 per cent from May, marking the second consecutive monthly decline and reaching its lowest level since February, influenced by good global availability prospects. Slowing global economic growth also weighed on international sugar demand and prices.”
The FAO said regarding international meat prices that its Meat Price Index “averaged 124.7 points in June, up 1.7 per cent from May, setting a new record high and exceeding by 12.7 per cent its June 2021 value”.
“World prices across all meat types increased, with those of poultry meat rising sharply, reaching an all-time high, underpinned by the continued tight global supply conditions impacted by the war in Ukraine and the Avian Influenza outbreaks in the Northern Hemisphere,” it stated. (SC)