ForumIAS announcing GS Foundation Program for UPSC CSE 2025-26 from 19 April. Click Here for more information.
ForumIAS Answer Writing Focus Group (AWFG) for Mains 2024 commencing from 24th June 2024. The Entrance Test for the program will be held on 28th April 2024 at 9 AM. To know more about the program visit: https://forumias.com/blog/awfg2024
News:The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation’s(FAO’s) food price index has touched 182.5 points in January 2020, the highest since December 2014.
Facts:
About FAO Food Price Index(FPI):
- The FAO Food Price Index(FPI) is a measure of the change in international prices of a basket of major food commodities with reference to a base period of 2002-04.
How FPI has affected India:
- The surge in global food prices is reflected in trends in India as well. Annual consumer food price index(CFPI) inflation which stood at 2.99% in August 2019 has reached 13.63% in January,2020.
- The inflation in the wholesale price index for food articles has also increased from 7.8% in August 2019 to 11.51% in January 2020.
Factors for rise in food inflation:
Domestic Factors:
- Indian Agricultural production is dependent on monsoon.Hence,poor monsoonal rainfall during the first half (June-July) has impacted the sowing season which led to reduced/delayed Kharif sowing.
- The increase in the retail prices of onion was purely due to the failure of the domestic Kharif crop.
Global Factors:
- India imports two-thirds of its edible oil requirement and that is why higher international prices are automatically transmitted to the domestic market such as in the case of Palm oil.
Additional information:
Imported Inflation:
- Imported inflation is when the general price level rises in a country because of the rise in prices of imported commodities.
- The two key contributors to India’s imports are: Crude Oil and Gold.The rise in the prices of these two products usually lead to rise in the import bill of the country.
