The realities of a changing climate are becoming increasingly clear, with temperatures rising around the world and extreme weather events, like flooding and droughts, becoming more and more frequent. April 2025 was the second hottest April globally on record, and evidence suggests such anomalous high temperatures could become the norm rather than the exception.

In recent years, it has become increasingly recognized that true food and nutrition security depend not just on consumption of an adequate caloric quantity of food but also on consumption of the right types of food. A healthy diet—which the WHO and FAO define as one characterized by adequate, balanced, moderate, and diverse consumption of safe foods and beverages—is essential in supporting long-term physical and cognitive health, development, and well-being and in preventing diseases and damaging nutrient imbalances.

The FAO Food Price Index fell marginally in May but remained 6 percent higher than its May 2024 level. The decline was driven by falling cereals, sugar, and vegetable oils prices.

Fertilizer is a critical input for agricultural productivity, and its increased use has been closely associated with rising agricultural yields in many countries. In developing economies that rely heavily on fertilizer imports and are home to vulnerable smallholder farmers, fertilizer price spikes can pose serious risks. When farmers lack access to effective risk-sharing mechanisms, sudden or excessive increases in fertilizer prices can discourage adoption, disrupt planting decisions, and reduce productivity.

The FAO Food Price Index rose 1 percent in April, driven by increasing cereal, dairy, and meat price. While the Index was 7.6 percent higher than its April 2024 level, it remains nearly 20 percent lower than the record reached in March 2022.

The FAO Food Price Index remained stable in March, with falling cereal and sugar prices balancing rising meat and vegetable oil prices. The Index was almost 7 percent higher than its March 2024 level but still remains significantly below March 2022 levels.

First in a blog series examining the potential consequences of the newly proposed U.S. tariffs for global agrifood trade.

Fertilizer prices experienced a significant surge in 2021, driven by the post-COVID 19 global economic recovery. Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine propelled prices even higher. Broad economic sanctions on key fertilizer exporters Russia and Belarus exempted agricultural products but triggered further economic disruptions. Overall, the conflict heightened market uncertainties regarding the availability of potash, phosphate, and nitrogen-based fertilizers in international trade.

Recurring spikes and high volatility in international food and fertilizer prices (Figure 1) have triggered economic impacts around the world over the past two decades. These major shocks include the global food price crises of 2007-2008 and 2010-2011, the market disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the Russia-Ukraine war. In the months after Russia’s February 2022 invasion, real global food prices reached the highest levels on record in more than six decades, while key global fertilizer prices more than doubled over those of the previous year.

Figure 1

The FAO Food Price Index declined by 1.6 percent from December. While the Index was 6.2 percent higher than its January 2024 level, it remains 22 percent below its peak of March 2022.