June 26, 2023

FAO outlook expects increased production in most food categories including coarse grains, meat

The Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) latest release of the Food Outlook pointed to likely increases in production across most categories, including rice, coarse grains, oilcrops, milk, sugar, meat and fish and fishery products.

However, global wheat output could fall from last season’s all-time high.

Notwithstanding this generally positive outlook, global agrifood production systems remain vulnerable to shocks, stemming from extreme weather events, geopolitical tensions, policy changes and developments in other commodity markets — with the potential to tip the delicate demand-supply balances and impacting prices and world food security.

The global production of coarse grains is forecast to rise by 3% to 1,513 million tonnes, a new record, buoyed by an expected significant increase in maize output in the United States and a record harvest in Brazil, leading to higher overall supplies and lower prices.

Global wheat production this year is expected to decline by 3% from its all-time high of 777 million tonnes in 2022, due mainly to expected decreases in Russia and Australia, both of which registered record outputs last year. The declines mostly reflect the likely impacts of extreme weather events, seen leading to lower planted areas.

Pig and bovine meat volumes could drop slightly in 2023.

- FAO