Some housewives in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), on Sunday, said they have ditched tomato for their stews and other sauces as its cost skyrockets.
The women, who disclosed this in an interview, said they had resorted to using garden egg and carrot for stew.
They explained that eggplant, called yalo in Hausa, igba in Yoruba and anyara in Igbo, could blend well with rice in the same manner as tomato.
Others said they were exploring pumpkin, pawpaw or other traditional soups like white soup and palm fruit soup, popularly called banga soup, in place of tomato stew.
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Mrs Jumai Amodu, a mother of five, said a week without rice with tomato stew was unfulfilling for her and the family.
She explained that rice with stew was a regular on their menu, adding that “there is an unexplainable satisfaction that comes with taking cooked rice and stew.”
She, however, said that with the scarcity and high cost of tomato, her family was exploring garden egg stew.
Mrs Amodu said, “Since tomato became very expensive, we decided to use garden egg for stew, and it is as sweet as tomato stew. The only major difference between garden egg stew and tomato stew is the colour.
“We also use pumpkin stew with rice sometimes, and although it has its unique taste, it blends well with rice.”
Mrs Helen Omo, a businesswoman, said although tomato stew was an important recipe in almost all homes in Nigeria, the scarcity of tomato had made most Nigerians to think of alternatives.
She said, “I went to the market yesterday to get some tomatoes for stew, and a sizable bushel which costs between N2,000 and N2,500 was being sold for as much as N6,500. I did not bother to haggle the price because it was way beyond my budget.”
Mr Chinedu, an entrepreneur, said, “The prices of all foodstuff have gone up, but that of tomato is outrageous, probably because it is its off-season.
“Besides being expensive, it is very scarce, and as a result we have decided to explore other recipes.”
Umar Adamu, a tomato retailer in Nyanya in the FCT, said he had stopped retailing tomato for some days due to low patronage.
Mrs Rukkaya Umar, Chief Executive Officer, Abraks Farm Produce Nigeria Limited, said the major reason for the scarcity of tomato was the high cost of fertiliser.
She noted that many tomato farmers do not grow it because they cannot afford fertiliser, adding that fertiliser was critical to its growth.
Mrs Umar also said that reliance on seasonal farming was one of the reasons for the scarcity, adding that it was tomato’s off-season. (NAN)
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