United Nations agency, the Food and Agriculture Organisation
(FAO) has said that food community prices broadly steady , reports
NaijaAgroNet.
According to the FAO
Food Price Index which averaged 169.5 points in January, nearly
unchanged from the previous month, as rising prices for staple grains and palm
oil were offset by declining quotations for sugar, butter and cheese.
The FAO Cereal Price Index rose almost 2.5
percent from December, as the effect of large supplies was more than offset by
concerns over weather and a weaker U.S. dollar. The index, which covers wheat,
rice and coarse grains including maize, is 6.3 percent higher than its January
2017 level.
FAO's Food Price Index is a trade-weighted index tracking
international market prices for five major food commodity groups.
The FAO Vegetable Oil Price Index was
virtually unchanged in January, as palm oil values rose moderately while those
for sunflower and rapeseed oils weakened.
The FAO Dairy Price Index declined 2.4
percent from December 2017. Lower international price quotations for
butter and cheese – spurred by abundant supplies in the northern hemisphere and
Australia - outweighed higher prices of milk powders.
The FAO Sugar Price Index declined 1.6
percent to more than 30 percent below its year-ago level, driven by strong
production outcomes and consequently ample export availabilities.
The FAO Meat Price Index was almost
unchanged month-on-month, as weak import demand for poultry and pigmeat offset
stronger demand for ovine meat and reduced quantities of bovine meat offered
for sale from Oceania.
Isaac Oyimah/GEE