Source:  Rita Jane Gabbett, MEATINGPLACE.COM, 2/4/11

World food prices surged to a new historic peak in January, for the seventh consecutive month, according to the updated Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Food Price Index.

The Index averaged 231 points in January and was up 3.4 percent from December 2010. This is the highest level (both in real and nominal terms) since FAO started measuring food prices in 1990. Prices of all monitored commodity groups registered strong gains in January, except for meat, which remained unchanged.

The FAO Meat Price Index was steady at around 166 points, as declining meat prices in Europe, caused by a fall in consumer confidence following the dioxin feed contamination scandal, was compensated for by a slight increase in export prices from Brazil and the United  States, according to the report.

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