Global Forum on Food Security and Nutrition (FSN Forum)

FAO invites those working in policy or research on agricultural trade and climate change to submit papers to be presented at the 2017 International Conference on Climate Change Agricultural Trade and Food Security.

The Conference will bring together policy makers, academics and practitioners to exchange ideas, research findings and experiences on the linkages between agricultural trade and climate change.

The outcomes of these consultations will contribute to FAO’s flagship report, The State of Agricultural Commodity Markets (SOCO), which will examine the potentials of agricultural trade and trade policies to enhance food security and sustainable agricultural production in the context of a world confronting climate change impacts.

For more information on the call, please see: http://www.fao.org/3/a-bt390e.pdf.

More information on the conference is available here:

http://www.fao.org/economic/est/est-events-new/climatetrade/en/.

To register: http://www.fao.org/trade/registration-form/en/?related=1026667&list=1. 

Registration to the Conference closes on Friday, 20 October 2017.

The latest issue of the FPMA Bulletin FAO/GIEWS monthly report on food price trends at world, regional and country level, with a focus on countries where prices of one or more basic food commodity are at abnormal high levels in main markets, has been released.

Main highlights of this issue are higher international prices of wheat and rice, while at sub-regional level, a general increase in prices of rice in Asia and the new harvests in East Africa are putting downward pressure on cereal prices, which, however, remain at near-record levels.

KEY MESSAGES

• International wheat prices generally increased in June on quality concerns amid unfavourable growing conditions for the 2017 crops in some key producing countries. Export prices of maize remained generally unchanged, while rice quotations continued to increase mainly on account of strong demand.
• In East Africa, cereal prices either remain stable or declined in June with the new 2017 harvests, but remained at near-record levels in several countries. Prices increased sharply in the past several months, due to tight supplies because of drought-reduced 2016 second season crops and concerns about the overall performance of this year’s harvests following poor rains and crop pests.
• In Asia, sustained demand further underpinned domestic prices of rice in exporting countries in June. Elsewhere in the subregion, rice prices rose further and reached record highs in Bangladesh, reflecting losses incurred in the 2017 main season crop, coupled with reduced production and imports in 2016. In Sri Lanka, an anticipated reduction in the 2017 output continued to support prices of rice.

The report can be accessed through the following link:

http://www.fao.org/3/a-i7536e.pdf.

The FAO Trade and Markets Division has released the latest issue of the biannual Food Outlook report, which focuses on developments affecting global food and feed markets.

This issue highlights that for nearly all the commodities covered in the report, markets tend to exhibit a well-balanced situation at the global level. However, in some cases prospects at the country or regional level may diverge from this positive outlook. Furthermore, larger import volumes and rising shipping costs are expected to lift the global food import bill to over USD 1.3 trillion this year, up 10.6 percent from 2016.

The report can be accessed through the following link:

http://www.fao.org/3/a-i7343e.pdf.

The latest issue of the FPMA Bulletin FAO/GIEWS monthly report on food price trends at world, regional and country level with a focus on countries where prices of one or more basic food commodity are at abnormal high levels in main markets.

Main highlights of this issue are the general decline of wheat and maize prices in the international market; while at sub-regional level, the further increase in cereal prices in East Africa and in the Southern Hemisphere countries the downward pressure on maize prices exerted by overall favourable production prospects in 2017

Key Messages

• Wheat prices generally declined in April, on account of ample supplies and generally favourable outlook for the 2017 harvest. Export prices of maize remained under downward pressure, mainly reflecting expectations of bumper crops in Southern Hemisphere countries. By contrast, international rice prices increased, supported by a rebound in trade activity, especially due to accelerated sales to countries of the Near East.
• In East Africa, cereal prices rose further in April and reached record or near‑record levels in most countries. Prices were underpinned by tight supplies, following drought-reduced 2016 second season outputs, and uncertain prospects for the upcoming 2017 harvests due to drier‑than‑average conditions and armyworm infestation affecting key‑growing areas.
• In Southern Hemisphere countries, favourable maize production prospects kept domestic prices under downward pressure in April and below their year-earlier levels. In Brazil, where a bumper first season crop is being harvested, maize prices declined sharply in April and averaged some 40 percent lower than a year earlier. In South Africa, expectations of a near‑record output pushed down white maize prices for the fourth consecutive month to less than half their year-earlier levels.

The report can be accessed through the following link:

http://www.fao.org/3/a-i7230e.pdf.