ROME, March 7 (Reuters) - Global food commodity prices

rose in February, driven by higher sugar, dairy, and vegetable

oil prices, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the

United Nations said on Friday.

The FAO Food Price Index, which tracks monthly changes in

international prices of globally traded food commodities,

averaged 127.1 points last month, up 1.6% from January and 8.2%

from February 2024.

The jump was largely driven by sugar prices, which shot up

6.6% month-on-month, pushed higher by concerns over tighter

global supplies for the 2024/25 season, partly because of

unfavourable weather conditions in Brazil.

Dairy prices increased 4% from January, with all major dairy

products rising, spurred on by strong import demand which

exceeded production in key exporting regions.

Vegetable oil prices rose 2% month-on-month and 29.1%

year-on-year, largely due to higher prices for palm, soy, and

sunflower oils, driven by supply constraints in Southeast Asia

and strong demand from the biodiesel sector.

FAO's cereal price index edged up 0.7% from January.

Wheat prices increased due to tighter supplies in Russia and

concerns over crop conditions in eastern Europe and north

America, while maize prices continued to rise due to tightening

supplies in Brazil and strong U.S. export demand. Conversely,

world rice prices fell by 6.8% in February.

Meat prices edged down 0.1% on the month.

In a separate report, the FAO predicted a modest increase in

global wheat production for 2025, estimated at 796 million

tonnes, some 1% higher than the previous year.

This growth was supported by expected production gains in

the European Union, particularly in France and Germany.

However, challenges such as dry conditions in eastern Europe

and excessive rainfall in western European could impact yields,

the FAO warned. In the U.S., wheat acreage was expected to

expand, though yields might decline due to drought conditions.

Rice production was forecast to reach a record high of 543

million tonnes in 2024/25, driven by positive crop prospects in

India and favourable growing conditions in Cambodia and Myanmar.

The FAO also revised its estimate for global cereal

production in 2024 to 2.842 billion tonnes, marginally higher

than the 2023 level.