FAO confirms higher meat prices and lower grain crops
04/10/2012
Strengthening meat and dairy prices were the main reason for the increase, the Rome-based organisation said. Grain prices have led to increased costs for meat and dairy producers and have led to higher prices for consumers.
As expected, the FAO has said its latest forecasts confirm a decline in global cereal production this year, but it pointed out that it expects record harvests in the countries it calls Low-Income Food-Deficit Countries (LIFDCs).
World cereal production in 2012 is now forecast at 2,286 million tonnes, which would represent a 2.6% decline from 2011, which was a record year, with a 5.2% reduction in wheat production and a 2.3% reduction for coarse grains. Production has been affected by drought in key producing areas such as the United States, Europe and Central Asia.
“This is expected to result in a significant reduction in world cereal stocks by the close of seasons in 2013,” the organisation said, “even with world demand sliding as a result of high prices.”
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