Title: Food Prices - Our World in Data
Headings: Food Prices
Food Prices
Notice:
This is only a preliminary collection of relevant material
All our charts on Food Prices
Food Prices over the very long run
Wheat prices since the 13th century
Long-term food commodity prices since 1850
Food prices compared to wages
Long-term comparison of US manufacturing wages and food prices
Food prices in the recent past
Food Price Volatility
Consequences of High Food Price Volatility
Long Run Evidence of the Decrease of Volatility
Recent trends in food price volatility
Consumer expenditure on food
Per capita food expenditure
Share of expenditure on food
Food expenditure as a share of total consumer expenditure
Food consumed away from home
Determinants of Food Prices
Yields
Food vs. fuel: food and energy prices
Determinants of food price volatility
The effect of trade on food price volatility
Evidence of the increase of food trade
Kerala Study of the Effect of Mobile Phone Adoptions on Price Volatility – The Digital Provide
The Effect of Protectionism
Determinants of Food Expenditure
Engel’s Law
Data Quality & Definition
FAO Food Price Index
Data Sources
Historical Statistics on Food Prices
Food Price Data by David Jacks
Food Price Data by Nicholas Poynder
Data on Food Prices in Recent Decades
FAO – Food and agricultural price statistics
FAO – Food Price Level Index
FAO – GIEWS Food Price Data and Analysis Tool
Famine Early Warning System (FEWS)
International Coffee Organization (ICO)

Content: food and energy prices
In this chart we see the long-term global commodity price index of cereal crops (wheat and corn) alongside the oil price index since 1850. Although not perfectly matched, we see some relationship between the two: increases in oil (energy) prices tend to result in increases in cereal prices. This relationship may be attributed to two key reasons. Firstly, most modern agricultural and food systems require energy inputs (either in the form of on-farm machinery, transportation, distribution or storage energy). Increases in energy prices can inevitably have an impact of producer and distribution costs, resulting in higher food prices. Studies have suggest that the passthrough of price changes in energy and transport inputs to agricultural commodities to result in a price increase of approximately 15-20 percent. 11
The second potential reasoning for this relationship relates to the allocation of crops to biofuels – an important consideration in terms of food security. The rationale follows that a rise in oil prices drive demand in the production of biofuels; this increased diversion of food crops to biofuel production reduces food supplies, resulting in an increase in price.