Global food price inflation surged in March, with oils, cereals and sugar seeing the steepest climbs, according to new data.
The UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (UNFAO) global food price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, jumped to 159.3 in March from 141.5 last year, a 33% gain.
Average prices rose nearly 13%, with oils surging 23.2%, and cereals following behind with a 17.1% increase.
Vegetable oil prices were driven by “higher sunflower, palm, soy and rapeseed oil prices,” according to the UNFAO index.
Russia and Ukraine are big exporters of oils, sunflower in particular, accounting for 80% of the global supply, with the UN body adding “quotations increased substantially in March, fuelled by reduced export supplies amid the ongoing conflict in the Black Sea region.”
Wheat and coarse grains, key components in cereals, were also impacted by “export disruptions from Ukraine and, to a lesser extent, Russia.”
There are concerns over crop conditions in the US, only further exacerbating problems surrounding the already strained supply.
Meat and dairy products also experienced increases in price.