Global food prices ease marginally in July

Global food prices have eased marginally in July as a decrease in cereals outweighed increase in vegetable oil, meat products and sugar, according to the food index report of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation.

The FAO global food index report which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 120.8 points in July, down from 121.0 points in June.

It was also 3.1 percent lower than its corresponding value one year ago and 24.7 percent below its peak of 160.3 points reached in March 2022.

According to the report, cereal prices averaged 110.8 points in July, down 4.4 points from June and 15.1 points from its July 2023 value.

This is its lowest level in nearly four years with global export prices for all major cereals falling for the second consecutive month.

The FAO said wheat prices fell on seasonal availability from ongoing winter harvests in Canada and the USA. It noted that strong exporter competition and weak global demand also weighed on wheat prices.

The vegetable price index soared to an average of 135 points in July, up 3.2 points from June, marking the second consecutive increase to a one-and-a-half-year high.

Read also: Global food prices remain steady in June

“The continued increase of the vegetable index reflected higher global quotations across palm, soy, sunflower and rapeseed oils,” the international report said.

Similarly, palm oil prices rose marginally, mostly underpinned by firm global import purchases that coincided with below-potential output growth in Indonesia, the world’s leading palm oil producer.

Read also: Global food prices surge for three consecutive months in May

Before July, the FAO food price index had risen for four consecutive months after hitting a three-year low in February as food prices receded from a record peak set in March 2022, following Russia’s invasion of fellow crop export major Ukraine.

While the diary price index remained unchanged in July (127.7 points), meat and sugar prices increased marginally to 119.5 and 120.2 points, respectively, slightly ticking global food prices in the month under review.