Global food prices climbed for the third month running in April, propelled primarily by surging vegetable oil costs alongside rises in cereal and rice prices amid high energy expenses, according to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on Friday. The agency stated that the benchmark for world food commodity prices increased in April for a third straight month due to elevated energy costs and disruptions from the Near East conflict. The FAO Food Price Index stood at an average of 130.7 points in April, marking a 1.6 percent gain from the revised March figure and a 2 percent increase compared to the previous year.
Vegetable oils surge
The FAO Vegetable Oil Price Index jumped 5.9 percent from March, hitting its highest point since July 2022, buoyed by elevated prices for palm, soy, sunflower, and rapeseed oils. FAO Chief Economist Maximo Torero noted that global agrifood systems have demonstrated ongoing resilience despite interruptions from the Strait of Hormuz crisis, though vegetable oils experienced sharper price hikes mainly from rising oil costs and heightened biofuel demand.
Read more: World food prices hit highest since September, FAO says
Other commodity shifts
The FAO Cereal Price Index edged up 0.8 percent month-over-month, driven by higher wheat and maize quotations, while the All Rice Price Index rose 1.9 percent as climbing crude oil and derivative prices raised production and marketing expenses in rice-exporting nations. The FAO Meat Price Index hit a fresh all-time peak in April, advancing 1.2 percent from March and 6.4 percent year-on-year, chiefly due to stronger bovine meat prices. In opposition, the Dairy Price Index declined 1.1 percent from March, and the Sugar Price Index fell 4.7 percent, weighed down by prospects of abundant global supplies.
The FAO also lifted its 2025 global cereal production estimate to 3.04 billion tons, a 6 percent improvement over the prior year, while trimming its 2026 wheat output projection modestly to 817 million tons.
For more news on economy, click here.
