Source: Tanjug
World food prices rose 1.5 percent in April, as rising dairy and meat prices offset a drop in grain prices, the United Nations food agency said.
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) also released its first forecast for global cereal production this year, predicting record production after a decline in 2018. year.
The food price index of this world organization, which measures the monthly price changes of a basket of products (cereals, oilseeds, dairy products, meat and sugar), was 170.1 points last month compared to the upwardly revised figure for March of 167.5 points.
The previous figure for March was 167 points.
In April, that index was at its highest level since June last year, but still about 2.3 percent below the level of a year ago.
The dairy price index rose 5.2 percent from March, marking the fourth consecutive monthly increase, boosted by strong import demand for butter, whole milk powder and cheese.
The meat price index increased by 3.0 percent on a monthly basis. The sugar and vegetable oil indexes also rose, but the grain index fell 2.8 percent last month.
In its first forecast for 2019. 2018, FAO forecasts that world cereal production will reach a record 2.72 billion tons this year, up 2.7 percent from the 2018 level. year, when production fell.
Among the major cereals, wheat, maize and barley should contribute the most to the increase in cereal production, with projected annual production growth of 5.0 percent, 2.3 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively, FAO said.