The world food price index in December 2023 decreased by 1.5 percent compared to the previous month, with a sharp fall in international sugar price quotes. This was reported by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), writes UNN.
The FAO Index is down 10.1 percent from December last year.
At the same time, prices for cereals - wheat, corn, rice and barley - rose by 1.5 percent. This, as FAO notes, was partly due to logistical disruptions that hampered shipments from major exporting countries. But also for cereals, the 12-month average price was down 15.4 percent from last year. Only rice rose in price in 2023.
Vegetable oil and meat became cheaper. The sugar price index fell 16.6 percent from November, reaching a nine-month low, although the index is still 14.9 percent above its December 2022 level. As FAO experts point out, the fall in sugar prices was mainly due to high production rates in Brazil, as well as reduced use of sugarcane for ethanol production in India.
Contrary to the general trend, the dairy price index rose 1.6 percent from November, although its value is 16.1 percent below December 2022. The month-on-month increase was driven by higher butter and cheese price quotations, helped by strong consumer demand ahead of the holiday season in Western Europe. At the same time, strong global import demand led to an increase in international shipments of whole milk powder.