Global Food Prices Slightly Below Record High

Global food prices fell slightly in April but are still just below record highs. This is reported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).

The price of, among other things, grain has risen sharply due to the war between Russia and Ukraine.

Grain became a fraction cheaper last month. In March, the price rose by 17 percent due to the war in Ukraine. That country, together with Russia, accounts for about 30 percent of all wheat exports in the world. About 20 percent of all exported maize comes from Russia and Ukraine. Corn also became slightly cheaper compared to March.

The index with which the FAO measures the price development of many raw materials for food products fell to a position of 158.5 points. However, that’s a minimal drop from March’s revised record high of 159.7 points.

High food and fuel prices have major consequences for poorer countries. For example, human rights organization ActionAid reports based on research in thirteen countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East that bread has become almost half the price. In addition, cooking oil costs 64 percent more and fertilizer 83 percent.

“The food crisis is worsening and expanding globally,” said ActionAid climate justice team leader Teresa Anderson. “Our research shows that in some places, prices had doubled, tripled, or are even four times higher than before the war began.” As a result, ActionAid believes that governments and international agencies must act quickly to address an “even more catastrophic hunger of unprecedented levels of scale.”