FAO Expresses Concern Over Maize Shortfall

The Food and Agriculture Organisation has expressed concern over growing shortfall in maize grown in sub-Saharan Africa as well as poor production in other food in insecure hotspots.
In a statement in Rome yesterday, FAO said prospects for rice production in Asia and India had also deteriorated.
It said that the drop had prompted FAO to cut its rice production forecast by 1.2 million tonnes to 499 million tonnes, barely one per cent higher than the 2014 harvest.
The food agency, however, said global food prices aided by cheap dairy, sugar and others fell in June.
It said the drop continued an almost uninterrupted slide since April 2014.
FAO food price index, which measures monthly changes for a basket of cereals, oilseeds, dairy, meat and sugar, averaged 165.1 points in June, down 1.5 points or 0.9 per cent from May.
June’s reading was the lowest on the index since September 2009, it said.
FAO senior economist Concepcion Calpe said the supply situation was “very comfortable” but serious financial instability in parts of the world could cause future price movements.
“There is a lot of uncertainty today. You have the crisis in China, the crisis in Greece … we are in a more uncertain environment if we compare with previous months.
“Uncertainty can make prices move either way, especially if they come from beyond fundamentals,” Calpe said.