10 Jan 2013

UN / FOOD PRICES

The United Nations today reported that food prices fell for the third month in a row in December last year, balancing out sharp increases registered earlier in 2012, which had previously sparked fears of a food crisis. FILE UNICEF / IFAD / ILO / IAEA

Posted at: January 10, 2013 7:05 pm

Duration: 01:32

Available in: SD

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STORY: UN / FOOD PRICES
TRT: 1.32
SOURCE: UNICEF / IFAD / ILO / IAEA
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: NATS

DATELINE: FILE

SHOTLIST:

FILE - IFAD - 15 - 20 DECEMBER 2012, LAKE TITICACA AND LA PAZ, BOLIVIA

1.	Wide shot, quinoa farmers
2.	Med shot, weeding
3.	Close up, quinoa plants

FILE - UNICEF - 15-22 SEPTEMBER 2012, PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF LAO

4.	Wide shot, harvesting rice
5.	Various shots, tying rice bundles
6.	Med shot, carrying rice bundles

FILE - IFAD - 15 - 20 DECEMBER 2012, LAKE TITICACA AND LA PAZ, BOLIVIA

7.	Pan left, quinoa varieties
8.	Close up, red quinoa poured into bag
9.	Wide shot, woman selling quinoa

FILE – ILO - DATE UNKNOWN, MANILA, PHILIPPINES

10.	Med shot, supermarket cashier

FILE – ILO - DATE UNKNOWN, MADRID, SPAIN

11.	Med shot, fruit stand

FILE - IFAD - JULY 2012, SAN PABLO, THE PHILIPPINES

12.	Close up, money paid in market

FILE - IFAD - 15 - 20 DECEMBER 2012, LAKE TITICACA AND LA PAZ, BOLIVIA

13.	Med shot, woman mixing flour
14.	Close up, hand mixing flour
15.	Med shot, woman cooking in brick oven

FILE - UNICEF - 15-22 SEPTEMBER 2012, PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF LAO

16.	Wide shot, aunt feeding nephew
17.	Close up, nephew eating

FILE - IAEA - 12, JAKARTA, BOGOR AND SUKABUMI, INDONESIA

18.	Close up, cooking at Jakarta food stall 
19.	Wide shot, cooking and eating at Jakarta food stall 
20.	Close up, serving food at Jakarta food stall 
21.	Med shot, men eating at food stall

STORYLINE:

In a news release, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said its most recent Food Price Index dropped 1.1 per cent from November. The decline from 213 to 209 points was largely due to the continuing decrease in the international prices of cereals, oils and fats.

The Index measures the monthly change in international prices of a basket of 55 food commodities, including meat, dairy, sugar, and cereals. The prices for cereals also increased slightly, while sugar and oils prices fell.

According to its website, the AMIS initiative – for which the Secretariat is based at FAO Headquarters in Rome, Italy – seeks to enhance food market transparency and encourage coordination of policy action in response to market uncertainty, mainly focusing on four foods that are particularly important in international markets: wheat, maize, rice and soybeans.

As a whole, the Index averaged 212 points in 2012, seven per cent less than in 2011. The sharpest falls in prices were registered in sugars, dairy products and oils, and to a lesser extent in cereals and meat.

From July to September, cereal prices had steadily increased due to uncertainties and tight supplies. However, they began dropping in October because of weaker demand for supplies in industrial uses.

In December, maize prices fell sharply as large export supplies in South America relieved market pressure. Rice prices also dipped last month due to the expectations of good harvests, but wheat values remained virtually unchanged.

Oils and fats prices experienced a 1.9 per cent drop mainly due to the continued build up of large global inventories of palm oil, and sugar prices decreased only marginally. FAO noted that an increase in global sugar production, especially in Brazil, kept international prices down for much of the second half of 2012.

Meat prices registered a slight decrease as pig prices fell by 2 per cent, the agency stated, while dairy prices rose by 0.9 per cent – they were the only commodities to have experienced a rise in price as the dairy market is increasingly susceptible to supply changes related to pasture conditions, feed availability and affordability.