- House hold food prices drastically fell in some of the major markets in Lagos, according to data tracked by Nairametrics Research.
- The price of beans (50kg bag) had a 29.3% decline.
- Nairametrics conducts a bi-weekly survey of food prices from collated for over a year now showed a decline in prices.
- The markets surveyed include Iddo, Ago Ishaga, Daleko, Mile 12 and Ojuwoye Markets all located in Lagos.
Nigerians may be in for a pleasant New year as prices of staple items such as rice, beans, yam and garri fell the most in the month of January 2019 compared to September 2018.
Latest food price survey by Nairametrics, reveals that staple food items such as yam, rice, plantain recorded significant price reductions as we begin the new year.
Our food basket for the week ended January 24, 2019, recorded a 16.6% price drop compared to the week ended 29 September 2018.
This also corroborates nationwide data on food prices by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), which reports similar price declines. The NBS data for Lagos revealed a decline in food prices between November 2018 and December 2018.
So what dropped?
A 5kg bag of Ofada rice which sold for about N2,200 in the week ended September 29, 2018, is now N2,000 – which is a 9% price drop.
Another example is garri, a major staple food for Lagosians. An 80kg bag of Ijebu garri which sold for N10,500 in September 2018 now retails for about N7,000. In June 2017, it went for as high as N32,000. White and yellow garri prices also recorded significant price drops.
This decline in general food price also confirms NBS report that prices crashed for most items in the month of December 2018 when compared to November, particularly in Lagos. Irish potato was recorded to have dropped by as much as 21.39% while yam tubers dropped by 17.31%.
In total, out of the 43 food items in the list of the NBS, 22 recorded month on month drops.
Reasons for the drop
The NBS did not reveal any reason for the drop-in food prices on the national and state levels, however, our research indicated that it is connected to the harvest season.
The rains were much better last year compared to the previous year thus having a positive effect on yields. A stable exchange rate and fuel price have also aided price stability across the agriculture value chain.
See Pricing table
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