International food costs dropped by 1.8% in January compared to December, the latest report from the FAO Food Price Index (FFPI) found.
The FFPI has fallen for 10 months in a row and is down 17.9% compared to its March 2022 peak, while supermarket food prices have - apart from a dip in December - continue to rise, with a new record high last month.
FFPI compared in 2023 compared to the last three years Source: fao.org
Now at 131.2 points, the index is 3.2% lower than the 135.6 points posted in January 2022 -before the Russo-Ukrainian war began.
“The drop in the index in January 2023 was driven by declines in the price indices of vegetable oils, dairy and sugar, while those of cereals and meat remained largely stable,” the FAO said.
FAO food commodity price indices Source:FAO.org
Cereal prices, the only category to increase, grew by 0.1% month on month in January and 4.8% year on year- but remained 13% lower than March’s levels.
Other categories all fell monthly, with vegetable oils dropping 24.5% since January 2022 and 44.2% since peaking in March.
Diary and Sugar prices fell 1.4% and 1.1% respectively month on month, driven by falling demand for dairy products and improved sugar cane crop yields globally.
UK retail grocery price inflation reached a record 16.7% in the early weeks of 2023, according to supermarket industry data from Kantar, rising from 14.4% in December, which was down from 14.6% and 14.7% in November and October.