World food prices reach record high in February: UN agency

By Ovunc Kutlu

ANKARA (AA) - World food prices reached an all-time high in February, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said in a statement Friday.

FAO said its food price index averaged 140.7 points in February, up 3.9% from January -- a significant increase of 24.1% from a year ago.

The UN agency said the price increase was led by vegetable oils and dairy products.

The vegetable oils price index rose 8.5% from the previous month to a new high, mostly driven by increased quotations for palm, soy and sunflower oils.

The dairy price index averaged 6.4% higher in February from the previous month.

On a monthly basis, the cereal price index increased 3%, while the meat price index rose 1.1%.

The sugar price index, on the other hand, declined 1.9% from January.