Food prices up by double-digit
By Prices of fresh tomatoes and key perishables, and most food items have risen significantly in most markets in Lagos metropolis, BusinessDay recent market survey shows.
Checks around Mile 12, Oshodi and Boundary markets in Lagos last week reveal that a big basket of fresh tomatoes, which sold for between N16,000 and N17,000 late last month, now goes for between N29,500 and N31,000.
As of Saturday, a 50kg bag of rice was sold for between N17,000 and N18,000, as against N12,000 and N17,500 a month ago. Similarly, a 50kg bag of onions increased to N17,500 – N23,000, from N16,000 in April. A 50kg bag of ‘Rodo,’ a brand of pepper, now sells for N15,500, from N11,000 within the same period.
But the price of a 25-litre gallon of vegetable oil dropped from N13, 500 to N12,000, while that of palm oil remained flat at the price of N12,000 within the same period.
However, the price of a 50kg bag of Oloyin beans rose from N33,000 to N37,500, while 100kg bag of Olotu beans increased from N40,000 to N44,000, but 100kg bag of garri dropped to N20,500 from N23,000 within the same period.
A carton of frozen chickens witnessed a slight decline in price from N11,500 to between N10,000 and N10,500, while that of turkey, which previously sold for N13,000, now goes for N11,400.
However, the price of kerosene witnessed a significant rise in last month while the price of refilling a cylinder cooking gas remained flat.
A litre of kerosene, which sold for N200 at filling stations, is now N220. The 1.5 litres Eva water bottle of kerosene that sold for between N350 and N400 in April rose to between N400 and N500, depending on the location.
“Patronage has dropped. I hardly sell up to one gallon of kerosene now unlike before,’’ Josephine Onokpa, a kerosene dealer in Lagos, said.
To refill a 12.5kg cylinder cooking gas, consumers have to pay between N4,000 and N5,000, depending on the location.
Biliya Lawal Adam, secretary of Perishable Goods’ section, Mile 12 Market, Lagos, had earlier attributed the high price of tomatoes to seasonal changes.
“We get fresh pepper from three states. Sokoto State is the highest producer of pepper, but they are off-season at the moment. We now rely on pepper from Kaduna State and it is only one local government in the state that we can get pepper from. Sokoto will start harvesting in November/December,” Lawal said.
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