FAO Food Price Index Rises 1.9% to Highest Since November 2022
Key Facts
The Food and Agriculture Organization's Food Price Index rose to 133.3 points in August 2026, up 1.9% from July and 2.5% from a year earlier, its highest reading since November 2022. It nevertheless remained 16.8% below the record reached in March 2022.
All 5 commodity groups in the index—cereals, vegetable oils, sugar, meat and dairy—recorded increases. The index measures monthly changes in international prices for a basket of globally traded food commodities, weighting the groups by their export shares in 2014-2016.
The Cereal Price Index reached 116.3 points, rising 2.2% from July to its highest level since May 2024. Global wheat prices gained 2.6% during the month and 15.0% from a year earlier amid disruption to Black Sea export logistics and weak crop prospects in parts of Europe after hot, dry weather.
Maize prices increased 2.5% from July as crop concerns in the United States and European Union combined with strong feed and ethanol demand and disruptions to input and export flows. The All Rice Price Index also rose 0.5%, supported by currency movements and sustained purchases in Asia and Africa.
The Vegetable Oil Price Index reached 196.9 points, rising 0.6% to its highest level since June 2022 as palm and soy oil advanced. The Sugar Price Index jumped 11.9% to 106.4 points, its highest since June 2025, as weather threatened output in Europe and Asia and production fell in Brazil.
The Meat Price Index increased to 127.9 points, up 1.0% from July, as poultry, pig and ovine meat prices rose while bovine meat prices fell. The Dairy Price Index climbed to 119.2 points, up 2.3%, led by higher milk-powder and cheese prices amid limited milk supplies in the European Union.
A 1.9% increase in the index does not imply an identical rise in consumer retail prices. The measure tracks internationally traded commodities, while the pass-through to domestic inflation depends on exchange rates, freight, processing, retail margins and tax or subsidy policies.
The supply outlook is more balanced than the monthly price move alone suggests. FAO forecasts 2026 cereal production at 2.980 billion tonnes, down 2.0% from 2025 but still the second-largest harvest on record. It projects stocks of 947.2 million tonnes and a stocks-to-use ratio of 31.6%, versus 31.9% in the previous season, while the next index update is scheduled for October 2, 2026.