The price of staple foods like garri and tomatoes has dropped significantly in Anambra, Ebonyi, and Enugu states, bringing relief to many households in the region.
According to a survey conducted by the Journalists in a major market in Awka, Anambra state, a bag of garri went for N90,000 in June, but is now worth N75,000.
Also, a basket of tomatoes that sold for N100,000 in June is now worth between N80,000 and N85,000.
A paint bucket of tomatoes has fallen to between N7,000 and N6,000 from N12,000 in June.
Similarly, the price of a bag of chilli has fallen to N60,000 from N120,000, while a paint bucket that sold for N8,000 is now selling for N3,500. A paint bucket of cayenne pepper, known as sombo, has fallen from 15,000 naira to 10,000 naira.
Also, a paint of crayfish, which was selling for 6,500 naira, is now selling for 5,000 naira.
A bag of onions, which was selling for 130,000 naira in June, is now selling for 110,000 naira.
A bag of potatoes has also dropped in price from 18,000 naira to 13,000 naira.
New yam tubers are now selling for 3,000 to 5,000 naira depending on the size. In June, a similar size of yam was sold for between N2,000 and N5,000 per tuber.
Chinenye Uba, a foodstuff seller, blamed the harvesting season for the fall in prices of yams, potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, and onions. She said prices of other food items such as beans and rice remain high in the market. A 50kg bag of beans that sold for N240,000 in June now goes for N260,000.
Uba said high transportation costs were the main reason as food items are mainly brought in from other states. “I believe that if the Federal Government can reduce the price of fuel, prices of food items will also come down,” she said.
Farmer Godwin Mbadugha, blamed the gradual fall in food prices on seasonal fluctuations.
“Many food items are being harvested during this period; so, when there is an increase in supply, prices will likely reduce.
“Farmers return to farm during the rainy season, which is when we usually experience hike in prices but during the harvest period, prices come down,” Mbadugha, said.
Meanwhile, the governor Prof. Chukwuma Soludo launched the Anambra “Farm to Feed” campaign on August 5 as part of his administration’s efforts to combat hunger and food insecurity in the state.
Soludo said the campaign is aimed at encouraging and mobilizing residents, especially youths and women, to venture into agriculture to boost food and cash crop production in the state.
“The farm-to-feed campaign is a simple partnership deal with farmers to end hunger within the next 12 months.
“If everyone starts producing, the pressure on food prices will reduce,” the governor had said.
During the launch, tomato, pepper, cucumber, watermelon, onion, okra, carrot, yam, potato, and oil palm seedlings were distributed free of charge to over 5,000 farmers.
In Ebonyi, food prices continue to soar in Abakaliki, the state capital.
According to a report by Journalists, a paint bucket filled with iron beans costs between 9,500 and 10,500 naira.
A 100kg bag of beans sells for up to 225,000, 205,000, and 180,000 naira depending on the variety. The only item that was reduced in price this time was garri, a staple for many households.
A trader, Jacob Ngwu, said a bag of garri costs between 24,000 and 28,000 naira depending on the type and color.
This is compared to the previous price of between 35,000 and 40,000 naira per bag in June.
“A paint bucket of the commodity is sold between N1,800 and N2,500,” Ngwu said.
Prices of “local foreign” rice remain high, fetching between 29,500 and 36,000 naira for a 25kg bag, depending on the variety.
The same goes for yam, whose price has yet to come down in the state as the new yam festival is yet to be held.
A yam trader, Steve Okoh, told Journalists that old yam tubers still sell for N3,000, N5,000, or N10,000 depending on the size.
He said, “The Izzi clan, which is Abakaliki, the state capital, has yet to celebrate its new yam festival.
“This makes it difficult for us to bring new yam to any market in the state.
“You cannot sell new yam in any of the markets in Izzi land until the new yam festival has been celebrated,” Okoh said.
Some stakeholders in the agriculture sub-sector in the state said the continued rise in food prices remains a concern for many households.
Prices of garri, new yam, tomato, and onion also recorded a significant drop in Enugu State. Nkiruka Chukwu, a retailer at New Market, Enugu, told Journalists that a 100kg bag of white garri that previously sold for N134,400 now sells for N105,000.
Chukwu said a 100kg bag of yellow garri that previously sold for between N168,000 and N160,000 now sells for N142,000 and N147,000 respectively.
Adamu Musa, an onion and tomato trader, said a bag of onions that previously sold for N85,000 now costs N80,000 while a basket of fresh tomatoes that sold for N60,000 has dropped to N50,000.
A yam trader, Izunna Nduka, told Journalists that new varieties of yams are gradually being introduced into the market while older varieties are gradually being sold out.
Nduka said a new batch of yams consisting of 100 tubers would fetch N450,000 while each tuber would fetch between N3,000 and N5,000.
Journalists recalled that as of season, 2023, a medium-sized tuber of new yam was sold for between N2,200 and N2,500.
Nduka explained that the cost of transporting 100 tubers from the North had jumped from N600,000 to N650,000 to N1.6 million.
He also said that 60 tubers used to cost N300,000 but now it is N650,000 to N700,000.
“Aside from this, we pay between N50,000 and N150,000 to produce officials, youths, and security agencies on the highways.
Journalists report that the price of other essentials has become unaffordable for the average resident of the state.
Some traders who spoke to Journalists blamed the rise in food prices on indiscriminate tolls on the highways, as well as high transport costs and poor harvests due to lack of adequate rainfall.
When we add all these expenses, with our little profit, they combine to increase the price of yam in the market,” Nduka said.
He, however, hoped that food prices would come down within a few months once yam harvesting began in many states.
He said the only yams purchased at Enugu market were brought from, Ebonyi, Ogbaru, and Anam in Anambra and Benue States.
Helen Uchendu, a plantain seller at Mayor Market, said the price of plantains, like other food items, has also increased.
Uchendu said a bunch of plantains currently goes for between N7,000 and N9,000 depending on the size, but by 2023 it will go for between N4,000 and N6,000.
Journalists further reported that the price of a bag of dried maize rose from N85,000 to N92,000 in August, while 50kg of “domestic foreign” rice, which sold for N65,000 a few months ago, is now trading for N86,200.
The Director, Enugu State Agriculture Development Programme, Dr Ogbonna Onyeisi, said the state lacked modern storage facilities for agricultural produce to avoid post-harvest losses.
