The cost of food: Facts and figures

Explore the facts and figures behind the rising price of food across the globe.

Viewed over more than three decades, the current spike in commodity prices does not look so marked.

Figures from the Commodity Research Bureau and the FAO show a take off in energy prices, before food prices start to rise

There will be billions more mouths to feed by 2050, making an increased demand for food a long-term trend

Rising prices will improve the trade balance of major food exporters, but major importers stand to see a greater deficit