Global food prices are at their highest in nearly four years. Here is what is driving them up. The UN Food and Agriculture Organization’s index hit 136.0 in September 2026, up 1.5 percent in a month and the highest since November 2022.

Cereals led the rise, up 5.1 percent in September and 17.2 percent over the year, as wheat and maize supplies tightened. Sugar jumped 6.1 percent to an 18-month high after El Nino-linked dryness hit Southeast Asian output. Vegetable oils edged up 0.9 percent, while meat and dairy fell.

FAO chief economist Maximo Torero pointed to “a tightening food supply situation” and disruption in key sea lanes, including the Strait of Hormuz and the Black Sea. Will your grocery bill rise? Higher wholesale prices usually reach shoppers with a lag of weeks to months, though the index is still 13 percent below its March 2022 peak.

The FAO forecasts record cereal output of 2.979 billion tonnes, which could ease pressure.