Food inflation: vendors and buyers complain about rising food costs

Nigerians are suffering as a result of the recent spike in fuel prices, which has raised the price of food products.

Speaking to the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja on Wednesday, a few food vendors and buyers in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) gave this response.

According to NAN, since the average price of petrol at the pump went up from N870 to N1,120 per litre, food goods including rice, beans, garri, fruits, vegetables, eggs, and vegetable oil, among others, have seen a considerable increase.

According to a NAN market survey conducted in the FCT, a bag of cucumbers was selling for N55,000, compared to N20,000 to N25,000 prior to the gasoline hike, while a cartoon of apple was being sold for between N76,000 and N80,000 as against N40,000 to N42,000.
Additionally, the prices of a bag of carrots were between N40,000 and N55,000 compared to N35,000, and a bag of cabbage was between N20,000 and N25,000 compared to N10,000.

Panla fish was now selling for between N40,000 and N47,000 each carton, while a kilogramme of chicken was selling for between N4,500 and N5,500 per kilogramme, and a carton was selling for between N45,000 and N55,000.

At the moment, a kilogramme of goat meat was selling for between N6,000 and N7,000 instead of N5,500, while a kilogramme of cow meat was selling for between N6,500 and N7,000 instead of N6,000.

According to NAN, the price of a crate of eggs was between N7,000 and and N7,500 as against N6,000 and N6,500, while half a bag of Garri was being sold for between N36,000 and 38,000 as against N34,000.
The current price range for a medium basket of tomatoes was N10,000 to N15,000. The price range for a 50 kilogramme bag of rice is N84,000 to N120,000.

Nyanya Market vendor Stella Ayanwu, who sells frozen food, blamed rising transportation costs for the rising cost of food goods.

It used to cost N1,500 to transport frozen groceries from Kado Market, but today it costs N5,000, and we have to compensate for that expense, she claims.

Although we truly feel bad for our consumers, there is nothing we can do about it. It affects everyone, and we all have wants to be met," she said.

Additionally, Wuse Market fruit and vegetable vendor Salisu Abubakar stated that the price of shipping produce from Orange Market in Nasarawa State had tripled in price because of the fuel increase.
For instance, a bag of cabbage used to cost N10,000 before the price of petrol went up, but now it costs N20,000, and a bag of carrots used to cost N35,000 but is now N55,000.

According to Garki Market seller Mr. Chinedu Okeke, the rise in fuel prices has resulted in an increase in the cost of nearly all goods and food items.

He claims that the hourly price changes have become concerning. Once more, there is no set cost for any food item, including rice, garri, and even Maggi.

For instance, groundnut oil used to sell for N70,000, but it now sells for N85,000. Our clients are wailing a lot. Many simply purchase small amounts and depart.

Public servant Mrs. Binta Idris stated that the rise in food items had become unbearable, especially with the increase in the price of petrol, which was making life so difficult for her and many Nigerians.

“I bought one kilo of chicken two weeks ago for N4000; last Saturday it increased to N4,500, and today it is now N4,700. Some people are selling for N5,000 and N5,500 per kilo.
"Normally, I pay between N2,000 and N2,500 for a single custard bucket of tomatoes, but yesterday, it sold for between N3,500 and N4,000."

"There is a rise every time you visit the market; how can we keep up with this?

Because transportation costs have increased, she stated, "the government really needs to address the issue of fuel because it is affecting food prices."

Businessman Mr. Chukwuma Eze stated, "We woke up to another increase in fuel prices, which has affected the prices of food items. We thought the price of some food items was going down because of the farming season."

"I paid N3,500 for a mudu of beans in September, but it was N3,600 when I visited the market a few days ago. Additionally, two weeks ago, a mudu of rice cost N3,000; today, it costs between N3,200 and N3,500.

Eze urged the government to take immediate action to solve the problem of rising petrol prices, which he claimed were hurting the nation's businesses and consumers.

According to banker Mrs. Ejiro Jonathan, the government must solve the problem of rising petrol costs since they are seriously harming Nigerians.

"The government needs to understand that every time the price of gas rises, Nigerians would suffer since petrol influences the cost of transportation.

“When transportation fares are high, food prices will surely increase. Many Nigerians can’t afford a decent meal anymore.
"We implore the administration to finally fix this gasoline crisis. "They ought to review their policies if necessary," she said.

Economist and agro-consultant Mr Sunday Peter claimed that the rise in food costs was caused by the rise in petrol prices.

According to Peter, when fuel prices rose, the cost of the majority of food goods doubled.

Because the person transporting the commodities from the farm to the market has higher transportation costs, farmers raise prices when they return from the farm in order to meet their own domestic requirements.

These are a few factors that affect food prices, but mostly the cost of transportation is a major determinant of the increase in food prices.

“If the government wants to have a serious impact on the reduction in the prices of commodities, the government needs to reduce fuel prices, and they are aware which policy will achieve this.
In addition to fixing the refineries, he suggested that the government open the market to allow more people to obtain licenses to import fuel.

He stated, "This will help bring prices down, but we will continue to have the same challenge as far as commodity prices are concerned when there is no competition."