The World Bank published on January 17, 2025 its “Food Security Update” report in which it provides a glimpse on the year-on-year change in the food component of a country’s Consumer Price Index (CPI). In details, the report revealed that food price inflation remains elevated across all countries’ income categories, with 72.2% of low-income, 43.5% of lower-middle-income, 38.0% of upper-middle-income and 7.4% of high-income countries having food price inflation levels exceeding 5%. The World Bank noted that real food price inflation (which is defined as nominal food inflation minus overall inflation) has exceeded real overall inflation in 43.5% of the 161 countries for which both food CPI and overall CPI indexes are available. The report also noted that nominal food price inflation in Lebanon has been following a downward trajectory, reaching an annual change of 23.2% in November 2024, down from 220.0% in November 2023 as depicted in the chart below:

The report noted that food insecurity in Lebanon has increased due to the decline in agricultural productivity, coupled with the rise in inflation and the disruption in supply chains, with local wheat production covering circa 12% of consumer needs. The UN-OCHA estimated that some $112 million is needed to tackle food insecurity for one million individuals between January and March 2025.

The report also mentioned that as of January 2025, 17 countries have implemented 22 food export bans on major food commodities in order to prevent additional internal food shortages, while 8 have adopted 12 export-limiting measures. With regards to Lebanon, the report mentioned that the country has implemented on March 18, 2022 export bans on processed fruits & vegetables, milled grain products, sugar, and bread, spanning until end of year 2024.