Global food prices fall in January: FAO

ROME: Global food prices experienced a decline in January, largely attributed to a reduction in the costs of sugar, vegetable oil, and meat, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) announced on Friday.

In its first monthly report of the new year, the FAO revealed that its comprehensive Food Prices Index decreased by 1.6% in January compared to the previous month. However, the index remained 6.2% higher than it was during the same month the previous year, although it was still 22% below the all-time high reached in 2022.

The data indicated that three out of the five sub-indices saw a decline in January. Sugar prices dropped by 6.8% to their lowest level since October 2022, due to favourable crop and export prospects in major sugar-producing countries, including Brazil and India. Vegetable oil prices fell by 5.6% as demand rationing exerted downward pressure on palm oil and rapeseed oil prices, according to the FAO.

Meat prices decreased by 1.4%, with the reduction in ovine, pork, and poultry prices counterbalancing the increased demand for beef. Pork prices were notably affected by import bans in Europe due to concerns over foot-and-mouth disease.

Conversely, dairy prices saw a significant rise, while the prices for grains and cereals showed a slight increase.

By RSS/Xinhua