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Agricultural support policies provide over $800 billion per year in transfers worldwide. Such policies encompass a broad range of government instruments to support the agriculture sector, which are typically funded from taxpayers and consumers. These include “coupled” subsidies intended to incentivize producers to expand output, “decoupled subsidies” that avoid shifting production incentives, and market-price support measures such as tariff and non-tariff barriers.

The real global price of food surged in 2022, reaching well above the previous peak seen in the 2011 food price crisis. While prices declined somewhat in July 2022, they remain alarmingly high, and some countries have enacted policies, such as export bans, to try to rein in prices on their domestic markets.

The FAO Food Price Index continued to drop slightly in February, reaching almost 19 percent below its March 2022 peak. This represents the eleventh consecutive month of decline.

The FAO Food Price Index continued its nine-month decline in December 2022, falling by an additional 1.9 percent. The decline was driven mostly by falling vegetable oil, cereal, and meat prices. However, overall in 2022, the Index was over 14 percent higher than its 2021 level, reflecting continued high prices driven by conflict, climate, and market concerns.

The October FAO Food Price Index remained largely unchanged from September, with rising cereal prices balanced by declines in the other commodity groups. The overall Food Price Index has fallen by almost 15 percent from March 2022 but remains 2 percent above its October 2021 levels.