DUSHANBE, December 12, 2014, Asia-Plus – The UN Food Agriculture Organization (FAO) says latest indications confirm that world cereal production will reach an all-time record of more than 2.5 billion tons in 2014.
FAO”s latest
Crop Prospects and Food Situation Report
notes that buoyed by bumper crops in Europe and a record maize output in the United States of America, this year”s cereal output should reach 2.532 billion tons.
The record global cereal harvest in 2014 will outpace projected world cereal utilization in 2014/15, allowing stocks to rise to their highest level since 2000 and pushing the worldwide stock-to-use ratio, a proxy measure for supply conditions, to rise to 25.2 percent, its highest level in 13 years, according to FAO.
However, the report also warns that food insecurity is worsening in a number of countries due to civil conflicts, adverse weather and the Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak. Some 38 countries are at risk of food insecurity, including 29 in Africa, 3 more countries than reported in October.
