Food price index hits lowest level since 2010

The monthly food price index of the United Nations food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) released on Thursday, 5, presented fall of 1% in February compared with January, to 179.4 points.
This is the lowest level in 55 months and represents 14% retracement before the same month of last year.
According to the entity, falling prices for cereals, sugar and meats offset the high observed in dairy products and palm oil.
The scorecard is in decline since April 2014, reflecting the wide offer and the devaluation of several currencies against the dollar, said Michael Griffin, an expert on dairy products and meat from FAO.
"The first thing to note is the prospect of favorable production for many cultures in 2015," said Griffin. "Also we have extensive stocks of most cereals."
The food price index of FAO accompanies five groups of commodities in international markets: cereals, meat, dairy, vegetable oils and sugar.
The cereal Group recorded fall of 3.2% in February compared with the previous month, to 171.7 points.
Low wheat prices and the prospect of massive crop were the main factors influencing the sub-index.
The FAO said rice prices still remained practically stable last month.
The sugar segment was what registered the largest decrease, from 4.9 percent to 207.1 points.
The pullback in prices was influenced mainly by the favourable climate in Brazil and by the export subsidy of the product in India, which should increase the supply of sugar on the international market.
The meat index already reached 187.4 points in February, falling 1.4 percent compared with January. Prices of mutton and beef retreated due to the appreciation of the dollar against the real, and the Aussie dollar.
The price of pigs, on the other hand, rose for the first time in eight months, supported by the European Union's decision to grant aid for the formation of stocks in the sector.
Dairy prices were high for the first time in a year, to 181.8 points, 4.6% above the January average.
The increase was driven mainly by the prices of milk powder and reflects the seasonal reduction of production in Europe and the fall of New Zealand and Australia uptake. Cheese prices have remained stable.
The index of plant oils had slight increase of 0.4%, to 156.6 points, reflecting the high prices of palm oil. In February, flooding in Malaysia and the increase in the subsidy to biofuels in Indonesia gave support to prices of the product.