GENEVA, Jan. 8: Although global food prices decreased slightly in December 2021 month-on-month, they were much higher throughout last year than in 2020, the United Nations (UN) said on Friday.
Abdolreza Abbassian, senior economist of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), told a press briefing here that in 2021, the FAO Food Price Index was 28.1 percent higher than in 2020.
Global cereal prices were at their highest level since 2012, on average 27.2 percent above 2020 prices, he said.
According to the UN official, in 2021, vegetable oil prices increased by 65.8 percent over 2020; sugar prices soared to their highest level since 2016; meat prices were 12.7 percent above 2020 prices; and dairy prices were 16.9 percent higher than in 2020.
"The monthly increase in prices since the last quarter of 2020 was a signal for producers to produce more, but whether or not 2022 would see an adjustment depends on several factors, including the repercussions of the pandemic, the cost of fertilizers and climate conditions," he noted.
