World Food Prices Ease Slightly in July, UN Says

LONDON – The United Nations world food price index saw a slight decline in July, according to data released on Friday, with a drop in cereal prices partly offset by increases in the cost of meat, vegetable oils, and sugar.

The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) price index, which monitors the prices of the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 120.8 points in July, down from 121.0 in June. The June reading was revised from an initial 120.6.

The FAO Cereals Price Index dropped by 3.8% to its lowest level in nearly four years, marking the second consecutive month of falling global export prices for all major cereals. This decline was attributed to the seasonal availability of wheat from ongoing winter wheat harvests in the northern hemisphere and favorable conditions for spring wheat crops in Canada and the U.S.

“Maize (corn) export prices also declined as harvests in Argentina and Brazil progressed ahead of last year’s pace and crop conditions in the United States remained robust,” the FAO reported.

Prior to July, the FAO food price index had increased for four consecutive months after hitting a three-year low in February. Food prices had been receding from a record peak set in March 2022, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a major crop export country. The July index value was 3.1% lower than its level one year ago and 24.7% below its peak in 2022.