Nigerians buying yam in pieces as prices soar

Many Nigerians in Abuja and environs who cannot afford a whole tuber of yam have resorted to buying it in pieces as prices of foodstuff prices soar.

A visit to some markets in the FCT by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday showed that yam sellers, desirous to make sales now cut yams in bits to sell to their customers.

NAN reports that yam is one of the staple foods in Nigeria but due to the increase in foodstuff prices, lovers of yam would rather buy it in pieces to quench their appetite.

Alhaji Ibrahim Tanko, a popular yam dealer in the Dei-Dei market, said most time, they cut yams when they are getting spoilt as a result of low patronage.

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”Some consumers will come to request for yam of N1,000 or even N500, and we are left with no option than to sell the already cut pieces to them; that makes them satisfied,” Tanko said.

Mrs Blessing Ekong, a yam seller in the Dei-Dei market, said that the current situation in the country had made it difficult for an average family to afford a big-sized tuber of yam

”Many people no longer buy yams because of the cost.

“We now cut the yams in pieces and rearrange broken ones to sell at the rate of N500 to N1,000, depending on the size.

“It also helps us increase sales because not everyone can afford a medium-sized tuber of yams for N3,000 or N5,000. Some food vendors also patronise cut yams’’, she said.

Ekong said due to the current economic situation in the country, some people are afraid of buying a big tuber only to discover that almost part of the yam was bad.

“It will be very painful to experience such a waste. That is one of the reasons many now buy pieces of yam,” she said.

Mrs Blessing Hassan, a yam consumer, said with the present situation in the country, buying yams in pieces was the best option.

“I prefer to buy it in pieces because it is cheaper and in most cases, I can see clearly if the yam is spoilt or not.

“Sometimes, I will buy a good-looking yam only to go home to discover that it is spoilt,’’ she added.

Another yam seller, Mrs Peter Kalu, said many people no longer buy yam because of the high cost.

She also said that cutting yams into pieces helps to increase their sales because many people prefer it.

“We cut them to pieces depending on the size and resell them in a way people can afford,’’ she said.