Global Food Prices Reach Highest Level Since 2022: FAO

A drought-stricken corn field as record heatwaves and drought have aggravated climate risks for farmers in Hajduszoboszlo, Hungary, 26 August 2026.

World food prices rose in August to their highest level since late 2022, as adverse weather and war-related disruptions in the Black Sea heightened concerns over supplies of staple commodities, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said on Friday.

Extreme heat and drought in Europe, the threat of a severe El Niño weather pattern, and trade disruptions linked to the wars in Ukraine and Iran have unsettled agricultural markets, pushing grain prices to three-year highs and sugar prices to a one-year peak.

The FAO Food Price Index, which tracks monthly changes in a basket of internationally traded food commodities, averaged 133.3 points in August, up from July's revised reading of 130.8.

The August reading was the highest since November 2022, although it remained nearly 17% below the record high reached in March 2022 following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

“August's increase in global food prices is a warning that the risk premium is returning to food markets: climate shocks, geopolitical tensions and disrupted trade logistics are converging to tighten supply expectations,” FAO Chief Economist Maximo Torero said in a statement.

The FAO's price benchmarks for cereals, vegetable oils, sugar, meat and dairy all increased in August.

Extreme weather in Europe affected prospects for maize and sugar beet harvests as well as livestock production, while expectations of an El Niño phenomenon raised concerns over palm oil and sugar output in Asia, the FAO said.

Escalating attacks in the Black Sea have curtailed grain shipments from Russia and Ukraine amid their ongoing war, while the US-Iran conflict has strained fertiliser supplies for crops.

The FAO's cereals price index rose 2.2% month-on-month to its highest level since May 2024, while its vegetable oil index increased 0.6% to its highest since June 2022.

The agency's sugar benchmark jumped 11.9% to its highest level since June 2025, with lower production in Brazil's key centre-south region adding to weather-related concerns in Europe and Asia.

In a separate report, the FAO cut its 2026 global cereal production forecast by 3.4 million metric tonnes from its previous estimate in July to 2.980 billion tonnes. The revised forecast is 2.0% below 2025, marking the largest annual decline since 2018.

However, projected output would still be the second-highest on record.

Forecast global cereal stocks at the end of the 2026-27 season were revised down 1.1% to 947.2 million tonnes, only marginally above the previous season's level.

A lower estimate for coarse-grain stocks outweighed an upward revision for wheat stocks, reflecting an anticipated build-up in Russian and Ukrainian stocks due to shipping disruptions, the FAO said.