Global meat prices offer mixed picture

Increased demand for beef has lifted the FAO Meat Price Index but poultry and sheep meat prices are declining.

The gauge for world food prices went up in January, largely catalyzed by supply-side constraints for vegetable oils, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) reported. The FAO Food Price Index averaged 135.7 points in January, 1.1 percent higher than in December.

The FAO Meat Price Index increased slightly in January, with world bovine meat prices reaching a new peak as global import demand exceeded export supplies, while ovine and poultry meat prices softened as exportable supplies outstripped import demand. Pig meat quotations rose slightly, in part due to rising input costs dampening global supply.

SOURCE: meatinfo