Trade barriers are a major contributor to the global food shortage, according to the National Farmers' Federation, which is concerned by the leap to trade distorting policies by foreign Governments in a misguided bid to lower their domestic food prices.
The May Westpac-NFF Commodity Index recorded a global shift in sentiment – dropping 5pc – as buyers delayed purchasing stock.
NFF vice-president Charles Burke said that with the northern hemisphere wheat harvest drawing closer, international Governments are hoping prices will continue to ease as production increases.
"Egypt, Morocco, Senegal, Cameroon, Haiti, Indonesia and The Philippines have all seen violent riots and mass protests as their people struggle with high agricultural prices and a lack of supply," Mr Burke said.
"Despite softening slightly this month, agricultural commodity prices remain 22pc higher than this time last year.
"In response to high food prices, some Governments have counteracted with short-sighted policies to restrict food exports in an effort to bolster domestic supplies.
"Farmers in Argentina, Kazakhstan, Egypt, the Ukraine and Vietnam, among many others, are actually discouraged from boosting their production to meet world demand owing to poor policy decisions by their Governments.
"These actions are, in effect, exacerbating and drawing-out the global shortage of food."
The NFF, which has long advocated free trade, says "politically weak and ill-advised policy decisions" such as those responsible for the stalling of the Doha Round of WTO talks, are now coming home to roost.
"Trade distorting subsidies, tariffs and other artificial trade barriers mire all production and send the wrong market signals – a sure-fire way to create dangerous situations of under- and over-supply, while breeding inefficiencies within the sector," Mr Burke said.
"Until recently, the net effect of irresponsible protectionist government intervention has driven over-supply, distorting markets and driving the global price of agricultural produce down to, in many cases, unsustainable levels.
"However, over the past few years, the global market has drastically turned to under-supply.
"Amid muddied market signals caused by world agricultural domestic support policies and trade barriers – especially in the European Union, the United States and other developed countries – the global farming community is actively prevented from responding to the food crisis in a timely fashion."
Mr Burke said recent government intervention restricting exports to meet domestic food shortfalls is only further exacerbating the problem.
"This bizarre set of events starkly highlights the critical need for governments to get serious about, and genuinely re-ignite, the World Trade Organisation's Doha Round of global trade reform," he said.
"Ending this farcical and dangerous charade is now critical."
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