Highlights
Food inflation in the region has ranged between 7.3 percent and 7.8 percent over the past five months.
Indonesia has been grappling with double-digit food inflation for several months, with a 12.6 percent rise in food prices in October.
In Afghanistan (Kabul), retail prices for low quality rice have risen significantly, increasing by an average 26.3 percent from the same time last year.
In India (Delhi), retail prices for onions, the country’s most widely consumed vegetable, were three times higher than at the same time last year, despite the government easing import requirements.
In Samoa, prices of roots staples, taro and yams, fell 12.9 percent, while banana prices dropped by 29.8 percent in October, following increases in supply to local markets.
The Government of India increased the Minimum Support Price for the winter season crops, including wheat and barley, to encourage farmers to plant more.
Initial estimates of damage to the Philippines crop production from Typhoon Haiyan, indicate that some 150 thousand hectares of rice paddy, maize and other high value crops have been adversely affected.