LONDON, Feb 2 (Reuters) – World food prices fell to their lowest level in almost three years in January, driven by falling prices for cereals and meat, the monthly food index showed. ‘Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) published Friday.
The FAO Food Price Index averaged 118.0 points in January, compared to 119.1 the previous month, the agency said on Friday.
This level is the lowest since February 2021.
“World wheat export prices fell in January as a result of strong competition between exporters and the arrival on the markets of crops from countries in the Southern Hemisphere,” says the FAO.
The UN agency also points out that corn prices have fallen sharply, thanks to better growing conditions and the start of the harvest in Argentina, as well as a greater supply in the United States.
The meat price index fell for a seventh consecutive month, as abundant stocks in major exporting countries pushed down prices of poultry, cattle and pig meat, according to the FAO.
In another report, the FAO states that global cereal production in 2023 is expected to reach a record 2.836 billion tonnes, an increase of 1.2% compared to 2022.
World coarse grain production was revised to a record high of 1.523 billion tonnes, after an upward adjustment of 12 million tonnes.
“This revision incorporates new official data from Canada, China, Turkey and the United States, where the combination of higher yields and larger-than-expected harvested areas led to higher corn production estimates “, indicates the FAO. (Reporting Nigel Hunt, French version Corentin Chappron, edited by Bertrand Boucey)
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