A Tempest in the Oil Vat: Shocks to the Global Vegetable Oil Markets

A series of events have impacted the global supply of vegetable oils during 2021 and 2022, which have resulted in historically high prices for these oils. According to the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), this has been a major contributor to rising global food prices. Exports of major vegetable oils in several key exporting countries have been impacted by events (including drought in Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Russia’s war on Ukraine, and Indonesian and Russian government policies that may restrict exports) that contributed to the increase in prices. It appears that, near term, vegetable oil markets will continue to be impacted by these events.