World food prices rise for third straight month in May

LONDON, June 09 (Reuters): The United Nations world food price index rose for a third consecutive month in May, as higher cereals and dairy product prices outweighed drops in prices for sugar and vegetable oils.
The UN Food and Agriculture Organization's price index, which tracks the most globally traded food commodities, averaged 120.4 points in May, up 0.9 per cent from its revised April level, the FAO said on Friday. The May reading was nonetheless 3.4 per cent below the level seen a year earlier.
The FAO index hit a three-year low in February as food prices continued to ease off from a record peak set in March 2022. The uptick in May was supported by cereal prices rising 6.3 per cent month-on-month amid growing concerns about unfavorable crop conditions curbing 2024 harvests in key producing areas like northern America, Europe and the Black Sea region.