Global Food Price Index Rises in July

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said on Thursday that global food prices rose in July, led by vegetable oils, dairy products and sugar, to continue recovery from the previous month, which came after sharp declines caused by the pandemic.

The FAO Food Price Index, which measures monthly changes for a basket of grains, vegetable oils, dairy products, meat and sugar, averaged 94.2 points in July, compared to a slightly revised figure in June of 93.1.

“Similar to June, further increases in the prices of vegetable oils, dairy products and sugar outweighed lower prices in the meat markets amid overall steady value of the cereal price index,” the FAO said in a statement.

The FAO vegetable oil price index rose 7.6 percent in July, to a five-month high.

The organization added that palm oil was supported by an expected slowdown in production, a recovery in global demand and a long-term shortage of migrant workers, while soy and rapeseed oil successively received support from tight supplies in Brazil and renewed demand in Europe.

The organization said that all its dairy products rose last month, which helped the dairy index rise 3.5 percent and return to the rise beyond the pre-pandemic level.