Record grain prices are ­placing a “heavy financial burden” on developing countries, forcing a small decline in food consumption, the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organisation on Wednesday warned.

The world’s poor countries will have to pay 35 per cent more for their cereals imports – taking the total cost to a record $33.1bn (€22.8bn, £17bn) – in the year to July 2008, even as their food purchases decline by 2 per cent. Food consumption per capita will suffer a slight drop.