Global food prices hit highest level since 2022 amid supply concerns

Global food prices climbed sharply in August, reaching their highest level since late 2022 as extreme weather, geopolitical conflicts and disruptions to international trade raised fresh concerns about the availability of key agricultural commodities.

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said its Food Price Index averaged 133.3 points in August, compared with a revised 130.8 points in July. The increase marked the highest reading since November 2022.

Despite the latest rise, global food prices remained almost 17% below the record level recorded in March 2022, when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine triggered major disruptions across international food and commodity markets.

FAO Chief Economist Maximo Torero said the latest increase indicated that risk was once again building across global food markets. He pointed to a combination of climate-related shocks, geopolitical tensions and disruptions to trade routes as factors tightening expectations for future supplies.

All five commodity categories tracked by the FAO — cereals, vegetable oils, sugar, meat and dairy products — recorded increases during August.

Weather conditions emerged as a major concern. Severe heat and drought in parts of Europe have threatened maize and sugar beet production while also creating difficulties for livestock output. At the same time, growing expectations of a strong El Niño weather pattern have raised concerns about future supplies of vegetable oils and sugar.

The continuing conflict in Ukraine has also affected agricultural trade. Increased attacks and instability around the Black Sea have disrupted grain shipments involving Russia and Ukraine, two major players in global grain markets.

Meanwhile, the ongoing US-Iran conflict has added pressure to fertiliser supply chains, creating another challenge for farmers and agricultural producers.

The FAO separately lowered its forecast for global cereal production in 2026 by 3.4 million metric tonnes from its previous estimate. World cereal output is now projected at 2.980 billion tonnes, which would be 2% lower than the 2025 harvest.

Even with the downward revision, the agency expects the 2026 crop to rank as the second-largest cereal harvest on record.