What are FAO food balance sheets?
They are indirect estimates derived from the difference between food production, utilization, waste and loss. Differences in the reporting of food production between countries can result in discrepancies in the data presented in Food Balance Sheets. For example, Australian data for wheat are reported as flour, some countries report cereal data as grain and others apply a correction factor to allow for the extraction rate (about 70%) of flour from grain. Hence this data is useful for simply comparing general grain and pulse consumption patterns and trends around the world.
