FAO Vegetable Oil Price Index Surges in July

The Food Price Index of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), a benchmark gauge of global food commodity prices, averaged 130.1 points in July 2025, up 1.6% from June, driven mainly by higher global prices for meat and vegetable oils. Despite this monthly rise, the index remains 18.8% below its peak in March 2022, though it is 7.6% higher than its level in July 2024.

The FAO Vegetable Oil Price Index reached 166.8 points in July, a sharp 7.1% increase from the previous month, hitting its highest level in three years. The rise came on the back of higher prices for palm oil, soybean oil and sunflower oil. Palm oil prices climbed on strong global demand and improved competitiveness, while soybean oil prices were supported by expectations of robust demand from the biofuel sector in the Americas. Sunflower oil prices also rose due to shrinking export supplies from the Black Sea region, while rapeseed (canola) oil prices fell as new-crop supplies arrived in Europe.