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Global Food Prices Climb Again
Published 7 days ago in Market Analysis

Global Food Prices Climb Again

Global food prices rose in April, driven by higher costs for cereals, meat, and dairy, while sugar and vegetable oil prices fell.

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Martina Osmak
Director of Marketing

Global Food Prices Rise in April: What You Need to Know

Global food commodity prices ticked upward in April, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations. The FAO Food Price Index, which tracks monthly changes in international prices of commonly traded food items, averaged 128.3 points in April — up 1.0% from March and 7.6% higher than a year ago.

What's Driving the Increase?

  • Cereals: Prices rose by 1.2% from March. Wheat prices inched up due to lower export availability from Russia, and rice prices were boosted by higher demand for fragrant varieties. Maize (corn) also became more expensive, mostly due to tighter supplies in the U.S.

  • Meat: The meat index jumped 3.2%, with pork prices leading the increase. Beef prices also climbed, especially in Australia and Brazil, due to high demand and limited exports.

  • Dairy: Dairy prices rose 2.4%, and butter hit a record high because of shrinking inventories in Europe. Overall, dairy prices are up a huge 22.9% compared to this time last year.

Where Prices Dropped

  • Vegetable Oils: Down 2.3% in April. Palm oil prices dropped due to higher seasonal output in Southeast Asia, although soy and rapeseed oils went up thanks to stronger import demand.

  • Sugar: Fell by 3.5%, with weak global economic signals reducing expectations for demand, especially in the food and beverage industries.

Looking Ahead: Cereal Production & Trade

FAO’s updated Cereal Supply and Demand Brief shows mixed signals:

  • 2025 Wheat Output is expected to hold steady at 795 million tonnes, with gains in Asia and North Africa balancing out drought worries in Europe and the U.S.

  • Maize production is set to rise in Brazil and South Africa, and the U.S. is planting 5% more.

  • Rice output is projected to hit a record 543.6 million tonnes in 2024/25, growing by 1.5%.

Trade and Stocks Outlook

  • Cereal utilization is expected to grow 1.0%, driven by more animal feed use in China and Russia, and increased rice consumption in parts of Africa.

  • Global cereal stocks are forecast to drop 1.9%, but the stock-to-use ratio remains comfortably stable at 29.9%.

  • World cereal trade could fall to its lowest level since 2019/20, down 6.8%, mostly because of falling demand from China and smaller maize exports from Brazil.

Fertilizer in Focus

The AMIS Market Monitor, also released by FAO, includes a special article on fertilizer markets — now more volatile due to geopolitical tensions and changing trade policies.

Source: https://www.fao.org/newsroom/detail/fao-food-price-index-increases-in-april/en