August 2025: Palaw Preparation Costs Rise by 24.8%.
In August 2025, the average cost of preparing palaw in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan reached 75.1 Turkmen manat, marking a 24.8% increase from 60.2 manat in August 2024. Compared with July 2025, when the cost stood at 72.9 manat, this represents a 3.1% month-on-month rise. On a global scale, food prices also moved upward, with the FAO’s Food Price Index showing a 6.9% annual increase.
Annual Price Changes for Core Ingredients in Ashgabat
Prices of key palaw ingredients in Ashgabat fluctuated significantly in August 2025. Rice registered the sharpest decline, falling 17.4% year-on-year, followed by carrots with a 14.8% drop. In contrast, several ingredients surged in price: onions soared 99.7%, beef rose 48.7%, wheat flour climbed 30.0%, and sunflower oil edged up 1.6% (see Figure 1).
FAO Price Index: Global Trends by Product Category
- According to the FAO, the Vegetable Oil Price Index rose 24.2% year-on-year, hitting a three-year high amid tightening sunflower and rapeseed oil supplies in the Black Sea region and Europe.
- Meanwhile, the FAO Cereal Price Index dropped 4.1%, with wheat and other staples seeing lower international quotations.
- The FAO All Rice Price Index fell 2.0%, led by declining Indica rice prices due to fierce exporter competition.
- The FAO Meat Price Index increased 4.9%, with global bovine meat prices reaching record highs. Strong import demand from China and the U.S. outpaced available export supplies, particularly supported by higher quotations in Australia.
Methodology Prices of ingredients in the Palaw Index are collected for 1 kg of onion, carrot, beef, rice, and flour, and 1 liter of cooking oil. Based on the methodology, in order to cook palaw for a family of four, we use 0.3 liters of cooking oil, 0.5 kg of onion, 1 kg of carrots, 0.6 kg of beef, 1 kg of rice, and 0.5 kg of flour in our formula. Please click here to learn more about the methodology of the Palaw Index.
