Farmers and food sellers across Nigeria’s South-South region are voicing concerns over the persistently high cost of food items, even during the harvest season\u2014a period typically associated with price reductions. Stakeholders from Akwa Ibom, Rivers, and Cross River states have reported that, unlike previous years, the current harvest season has brought only minimal and insignificant decreases in food prices.<\/p>\n
In a survey conducted in these states, farmers and traders noted that while the previous harvest season saw a significant drop in food prices, the 2024 harvest season has failed to replicate this trend. Mrs. Benedicta Amadi, a foodstuff seller in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, lamented that the impact of the harvest season has been largely overshadowed by skyrocketing transportation costs.<\/p>\n
“Transportation is eating up most of our profits, and this has forced us to increase the prices of our goods,” Amadi explained. “For example, a sizable tuber of yam that was sold for N800 during the 2023 harvest season is now being sold for between N4,000 and N6,000.” She also highlighted that perishable items such as tomatoes, onions, and peppers have seen dramatic price increases. A basket of pepper that sold for N1,500 to N3,000 in 2023 now commands nearly N16,000.<\/p>\n
Amadi warned that unless the federal government implements effective palliative measures, particularly in the transportation sector, food prices are unlikely to decrease significantly in Rivers State, even if prices drop in other parts of the country during the dry season.<\/p>\n
Cassava farmer Mr. Godwin Akandu, President of the Etche Farmers Cooperative Union, shared similar concerns. He noted that the prices of staple foods like garri and vegetables have only marginally decreased, despite the ongoing harvest season. “A basin of garri that was sold for N7,000 in 2023 is now going for between N16,000 and N18,000,” Akandu stated. He attributed this price disparity to the early harvest of crops, a strategy adopted by farmers to mitigate potential losses from flooding. Akandu urged the state government to collaborate with local farmers and invest in mechanized agriculture to help curb the rising cost of food.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, in Akwa Ibom, foodstuff seller Mrs. Happiness Oboh, who operates at Udua Nka Market in Eket, echoed these concerns, stating that the current harvest season has not brought the expected relief to consumers. “A bag of garri that sold for N120,000 in May now sells for N105,000, but the price of a tuber of yam has increased from N10,000 to N16,000,” she said. Oboh also pointed out that a bag of beans, which sold for N55,000 between February and March, is now priced between N80,000 and N250,000. Similarly, a bag of rice, previously sold for N50,000 in January, now costs between N80,000 and N85,000. She attributed the persistent high prices to multiple market unions, which she believes contribute to the inflation of food costs.<\/p>\n
The Chairman of the All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) in Akwa Ibom, Mr. Bassey Inwang, identified several factors behind the high food prices, including the rising cost of fuel, herders’ disruptions, and insufficient farmland. He stressed the need for timely distribution of farm inputs, grants, and loans to farmers to encourage early cultivation, emphasizing that agriculture is a time-sensitive activity. “Mechanized farming is essential for ensuring greater harvests,” Inwang said, adding that the lack of modern farming equipment and inadequate government policies are hindering food production in the state.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Farmers and food sellers across Nigeria’s South-South region are voicing concerns over the persistently high cost of food items, even during the harvest season\u2014a period typically associated with price reductions. Stakeholders from Akwa Ibom, Rivers, and Cross River states have reported that, unlike previous years, the current harvest season has brought only minimal and insignificant […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":44854,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[172],"tags":[59],"class_list":["post-44850","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-featured"],"aioseo_notices":[],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44850","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44850"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44850\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":44875,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44850\/revisions\/44875"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/44854"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44850"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44850"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/abujacityjournal.com\/livenews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44850"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}