California's Prop 12 Kicks In and World Food Prices Drop in December
From the Ag Information Network, I’m Bob Larson with your Agribusiness Update.
**Proposition 12, the California law that prohibits the sale of whole pork in the state that comes from the pigs raised in gestation crates, is now in place.
After delays from court challenges and the need to wait for a Supreme Court ruling, Prop 12 became law January 1.
The state has registered more than 1,250 producers and distributors to sell Prop 12-compliant pork.
**The U.N.’s Food and Agricultural Organization says world food prices dropped in December.
The Food Price Index, which tracks monthly changes in the prices of globally traded commodities, averaged 188.5 points in December, down 1.5% from November and 10% lower than December ‘22.
For 2023, the index was 13.7% lower than the average value of 2022, with only the international sugar price index higher during the period.
Cereal, Vegetable Oil and Meat Price Indices all dropped.
**The Farmers National Company says the farmland market seems to be moving into the new year maintaining the value increases it’s built during the last three years.
That stability is in place despite increasing pressure from declining commodity markets, rising interest rates, and inflation.
The sharp increase in land values last year, driven primarily by strong commodity markets, has slowed but the value is holding steady.
