World food prices hit 10-year high in 2021
(VOVWORLD) - World food prices jumped 28% in 2021 to their highest level in a decade and hopes for a return to more stable market conditions this year are slim, the UN's food agency said on Thursday.
 Residents purchase flour at a market in N'djamena, The Republic of Chad, on April 8, 2021. (Photo: AFP/VNA) |
The Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) food price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 125.7 points in 2021, the highest since 131.9 in 2011.
The monthly index eased slightly in December but had climbed for the previous four months in a row, reflecting harvest setbacks and strong demand over the past year.
Higher food prices have contributed to a broader surge in inflation as economies recover from the coronavirus crisis and the FAO has warned that the higher prices are putting poorer populations at risk in countries reliant on imports.