According to data released today by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in November, the index of world food prices continued to rise for the fourth consecutive month under the influence of strong demand for wheat and dairy products.
The FAO Food Price Index averaged 134.4 points last month, its highest level since June 2011 and 1.2 percent higher than in October, ProAgro Group reports. The index, which tracks monthly fluctuations in global prices of the most popular food commodities, was 27.3 percent higher than in November 2020.
The greatest increase in November was demonstrated by the price for dairy products, which increased by 3.4% compared to the previous month. The global import demand for butter and milk powder remained at a high level due to the desire of buyers to secure spot supplies in anticipation of reduced supply in the markets.
The Cereal Price Index rose 3.1% in November, 23.2% higher than the same period last year. Corn export prices rose slightly, while wheat prices reached the highest level since May 2011. This increase was due to strong demand with limited supply, especially of high quality wheat, as well as concerns about untimely rainfall in Australia and the uncertainty caused by a possible change in export measures in the Russian Federation.
