Agriculture & Food

According to the monthly report released by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations on the 8th, global food prices fell for the first time from the previous month after rising for 12 consecutive months in June.

The report shows that as the prices of vegetable oils, grains and dairy products have offset the impact of rising meat and sugar prices, the FAO Food Price Index in June was 124.6 points, down 2.5% month-on-month, but still up 33.9% year-on-year.

The report showed that the vegetable oil price index fell the most in June, with a month-on-month drop of 9.8%, a 4-month low; the grain price index fell 2.6% from the previous month; and the dairy product price index fell 1% from the previous month. At the same time, the sugar price index rose 0.9% month-on-month; the meat price index rose 2.1% month-on-month.

The FAO Food Price Index is published once a month and is used to measure changes in the international prices of the most active food commodities in global trade.

FAO also released the "Crop Prospects and Food Situation" report on the same day, saying that the new crown epidemic has exacerbated food insecurity. Currently, 45 countries around the world need external food assistance.