What's New

Food crisis and famines continue to plague many developing countries. Armed conflict and prolonged drought have left around 20 million people at a risk of starvation and death in Somalia, South Sudan, Yemen, and Nigeria, while several other African nations also currently face with food insecurity, largely as a result of climate-driven weather events. An estimated $4.4 billion in aid is needed to address these crises.

The FAO’s monthly report on food price trends was released on July 10, 2017. The bulletin reports on recent food price developments over the past month at the global, regional, and country levels, with a focus on developing countries, and provides early warnings for high country-level food prices that may negatively affect food security.

According to the June WADSE Report, global wheat supplies for 2017-2018 are up 2.8 million tons. These projections are greatly influenced by a higher production forecast for Russia, which is projected to be 69.0 million tons. Wheat production in India is forecast to be lower by 1 million tons, but remains 9 million tons higher than 2016-2017 production. Similarly, EU wheat production forecasts declined slightly this month but remains 4 percent higher than the previous year’s levels.

The latest FAO Food Price Index and AMIS Market Monitor were released earlier this month. The FAO Food Price Index is a measure of the monthly change in international prices of a basket of five food commodity groups; the monthly AMIS Market Monitor covers the international markets for wheat, rice, maize, and soy and provides an overview of the market situation and outlook for each of these crops.

Leaders of the G20 countries met in Hamburg, Germany on July 7-8 for the 2017 G20 Summit Meeting. The meeting covered a multitude of critical topics , including climate change, international trade relations, globalization, poverty and hunger, gender inequity, and inclusive and sustainable economic growth.