World food prices decline for the second consecutive month in June

Fair in Sarcelles, France, in the suburbs of Paris, France.
Tom Nicholson/Reuters
Global food prices recorded a slight drop in June. The decline was driven by the decline in the values of sugar, cereals and dairy products, which surpassed the rises in vegetable oils and meat. The information was released this Friday (3), by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
The FAO Food Price Index, which tracks monthly variations in a basket of agricultural commodities - such as cereals, meat, dairy products and vegetable oils, for example -, which are traded internationally, registered an average of 130.3 points in June, compared to 130.8 points in May.
The indicator is monitored by governments, investors and companies because it serves as a reference for the evolution of food prices in international trade.
Brazil is one of the largest global suppliers of sugar, corn, soybeans and meat, which makes fluctuations in these prices especially relevant for the country.
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The index had already retreated in May after reaching, in April, the highest level in three years, when the conflict between Iran, Israel and the United States caused a spike in the prices of vegetable oils.
The index recorded in June was 1.7% above the level observed a year before, but still 18.7% below the record reached in March 2022, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the FAO reported.
The cereal price index fell 3.5% compared to May. Wheat prices were pressured by the advance of the harvest and the prospects of ample supply in the Black Sea region, an important grain producing and exporting area. Corn, on the other hand, fell due to the expectation of ample supply in South America and the fall in oil prices.
The FAO rice price index, on the other hand, rose 3.2%, driven by greater demand in Asia for indica rice, a variety widely consumed in Asian countries.
Sugar prices, in turn, fell 5.7%. The devaluation of ethanol in Brazil encouraged mills to allocate more sugar cane to the production of the product. Still, concerns about a possible impact of El Niño on crops in India and Thailand limited the commodity's decline.
Dairy prices fell 1.5%, pressured by increased global supply. The FAO meat index rose 0.4% compared to the previous month and renewed its historical record, driven mainly by poultry meat prices in the face of strong global demand.
Vegetable oil prices increased 3.8%, driven by higher prices for palm and rapeseed oil, partly due to increased demand for biodiesel.

Source: G1