Food prices stabilise in Kano, Kaduna, Katsina

As bumper harvests are being recorded in parts of Nigeria, the expected multiplier effects on the prices of farm produce have been mixed-grilled in Kano, Kaduna and Katsina States.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) learnt that the prices of foodstuff have gone down in parts of Kano State, as well as Zaria and Kafanchan in Kaduna State.

NAN however gathered that some of the prices have remained high in parts of Kaduna city and Katsina State.

Investigations by NAN in the three states showed that several factors were responsible for the varying prices of foodstuffs.

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It was also observed that the development has taken a huge toll on the purchasing power of the ordinary citizens in the three states.

In Kano State, the prices of food items were coming down as new harvests reached the markets.

A survey conducted by NAN revealed that the prices of some grains have reduced.

However, local rice, which is still experiencing high demand, remains costly, with a bag going for between N150,000 and N170,000.

A bag of maize was selling for N95,000 as against N105,000.

Similarly, a bag of millet, which was sold for N90,000, now goes for N80,000.

A bag of beans that previously sold for between NN170,000 and N180,000 sold at N130,000, depending on the quality.

A bag of groundnut sold between N150,000 and N170,000 as against N200,000 in July.

Furthermore, the price of tomatoes has crashed in Kano as onions’ price also witnessed an increase.

A bowl and a measure of tomatoes that used to be sold for N3,200 and N3,500 have been reduced to N2,400 and N2,000, respectively.

The survey revealed that a bag of onions was also going for N70,000.

A produce dealer, Malam Tanko Idris, attributed the availability of products to bumper harvests.

Another trader, Abubakar Labaran, also said that the increase in the price of onion was because the product was severely affected by the recent rains.

This, he said, led to a shortage in supply and a subsequent increase in the prices.

He added that tomato farming was successful, which led to a surplus in supply and a subsequent decrease in prices.

A customer, Musa Shanono, expressed optimism that the prices of food items would crash further before November.

“When people don’t produce but consume more, there is bound to be food shortage and the economy will become weak,” he said.

Another customer, Ibrahim Ali, appealed to the traders to desist from hoarding food in an attempt to make more gains.

Aisha Ali suggested the use of an adequate storage system to preserve some perishable items like tomatoes during the harvest season, to prepare for their scarcity.

According to her, the newly-harvested crops have triggered a 30 per cent drop in the prices of foodstuff generally in markets.

In Kafanchan, farmers have attributed the reduction in the prices of foodstuffs to a bumper harvest from their farms.

The farmers made this known in separate interviews with the NAN in Kafanchan.

Amos Barnabas, a large-scale farmer, said food prices were gradually coming down in the markets because the farmers have started harvesting their crops.

Ladi Gimba, a tomato seller, told NAN that tomatoes were now cheaper than they were at the beginning of the year.

According to her, a basket of tomatoes now goes for N22,000 as against N35000 a few months back.

She added that a basket of the produce went for N17,000 this same harvest period in 2023.

Another farmer, Kambai Modecai, said he expects food prices to further crash in the coming months following the Federal Government’s suspension of import duties on food items.\

In Zaria, also in Kaduna State, the prices of agricultural commodities have stabilised in August at major markets within the zone, especially at the Anchau weekly market in Kubau LGA.

On Aug. 6 and Aug. 13, hybrid maize (white, red and yellow) was going for N85,000 for a 100kg bag.

Also, local maize (white and yellow) was going ₦75,000 per 100kg bag.

Similarly, Soybean was going for between ₦90000 and 95,000 per 100kg bag, while Sorghum (short kaura and white) was ₦82000 per 100kg bag.

Also, Cowpea (white and brown) were being sold for between N160,000 and 190,000 per 100kg bag.

Millet (Dauro) was going for ₦86,000 per 100kg; Paddy rice ₦60,000 per 80kg while milled rice was ₦140,000 per 100kg bag.

On Aug. 7 at the Saminaka market, Lere LGA, the price of maize dropped to N73,000 for a hybrid variety while local rice was N70,000 for a 100kg bag.

Paddy Rice was between N58,000 and N60,000; Soybean N90,000, Sorghum N73,000. Cowpea dropped to N140,000 and N160,000.

However, the prices were slightly higher in Giwa LGA on Thursday as a 100kg bag of maize was going for between N88,000 and 91,000.

Paddy Rice was between N65,000 and N70,000, Soybean was sold at N96,000 while Sorghum was N90,000.

Millet was going for N90,000, a 100kg bag of Cowpea Brown N200,000 while white Cowpea was N165,000.

In Kaduna city and its environs, some Kaduna residents said that the news being peddled on the reduction in prices of food items was not the reality in markets.

Both the consumers and sellers of food items and other essentials told NAN that there was no significant change in the food prices.

Mas’ud Abubakar, who sells food items at the Kasuwan Barci market, said the prices of food items have remained the same for the last two weeks.

He said a measure of rice was sold at N2400, beans at N2700 while wheat and garri were being sold at N1600 and N1300, respectively.

Zahradeen Kabir, another food items seller stated there was an increase in the price of some items, saying he sells a mudu of rice at N2,700 against N2,400 initial price.

On her part, Amina Mohammed, a consumer, said she had bought a mudu of rice at N2,300 recently against the N2400 initial price, saying the difference was too insignificant.

She said that the prices of beans and corn flour have remained the same, urging the government and other stakeholders to make food affordable for the people.

In Katsina State, the prices of food items were still high, as the prices for perishable commodities were decreasing.

A NAN Survey showed that this development was in spite of the fact that the farmers have started harvesting new crops.

Yet, the prices of some food items remained higher while those of tomatoes and other perishables kept decreasing.

A check by NAN in some parts of the state like Katsina metropolis, Daura, Malumfashi and Kankia, revealed that the residents were frightened by the situation.

However, the residents were expecting a reasonable decrease in the prices of food items as the farmers had already started harvesting crops like millet, beans and maize in some parts of the country.

The survey revealed that 50kg of local rice now costs about N75,600 as against the previous N83,300, and above, depending on the quality of the rice.

A 100kg bag of beans, which was sold at N200,000 and above before, now dropped to about N168,000, also depending on the quality and the market.

A measure of beans now sells at a price of around N4,200, against the former price of N5,000 and above.

However, a 100kg bag of millet was sold at a price between N85,000 and N100,000, in many places.

The survey showed that there was no change in the price as it was sold at the same price some months back.

A 100kg of maize was sold at N92,000, while a measure cost N2,300 and above in many places.

Malam Yusuf Ibrahim, a family man, described the situation as worrisome, though there was a slight decrease in some places.

“I recently bought a bowl of local rice and beans at N4,500 and N4,200, respectively, as against N4,900 and N5,100 last month.

“It is a harvest period, so, the prices of food items will continue falling day-by-day, as new crops are coming to the markets,” he said.

The survey further revealed that, following the frequent rainfall being experienced in the state, the prices of tomatoes have reduced across some markets.

Malam Abubakar Adamu, a perishables seller at Kasuwan Gwari, told NAN that the price of the different baskets of tomatoes had drastically reduced compared to a few months ago.

According to him, a big basket of tomatoes, which was sold at about N120, 000 to N150,000 a few months back, was now being sold from N20,000 to N25,000.

He added that a small and medium basket that was sold at N40,000 to N50,000, was now N10,000 and below.

Adamu attributed the reduction to bumper harvest during the rainy season.

“It will continue to go down up to the time that everyone can afford to buy,” he averred.

Malam Abdulrahman Sani, a household leader, said a few months back, he spent about N1,500 to prepare a stew, but now he spends not more than N500 on vegetables to prepare a soup.

NAN further reports that most of the farmers were predicting bumper harvests and expecting further reductions in the prices of all farm produce. (NAN)