Traders and residents across Lagos State have voiced growing frustration over the relentless surge in food prices, which they say has worsened compared to the same period last year.
Speaking in separate interviews, market operators in Oshodi and Mile 12 lamented that the cost of staple items such as rice, beans, garri, and tomatoes has reached levels that are straining households and reducing demand.
Mrs. Banke Faleye, a rice dealer in Oshodi, noted that local rice, which sold for between N90,000 and N95,000 per bag in 2023, now goes for well above N100,000. Foreign rice remains between N110,000 and N120,000 per bag. “Families cannot buy rice like before, and the government remains silent. As traders, we are not meeting our sales targets because demand has dropped drastically,” she said.
Beans sellers also expressed concern. Mrs. Nonye Nwosu explained that a paint bucket of beans now costs between N5,000 and N6,000, forcing customers to resort to buying in cups. “We wonder how large families are managing to feed themselves with today’s realities,” she added.
Tomato and pepper traders attributed the steep hike to rising transport costs and seasonal scarcity. Ms. Opeyemi Olajuwon said, “Transport costs have doubled, making everything more expensive. N1,000 worth of tomatoes can no longer cook soup for a small family. Even as a trader, I struggle to afford rice for my household.”
At Mile 12, traders confirmed that the price of a bag of rice has nearly doubled in the last twelve months. Analysts have linked the trend to multiple factors, including the weakening naira, higher transport costs from the removal of fuel subsidies, insecurity in farming regions, and flooding in parts of the north that disrupted agricultural output.
For many Lagos residents, the situation has turned daily survival into a challenge. Ms. Favour Onyedika, a resident of FESTAC, said, “How can we celebrate Independence Day when we can hardly afford foodstuffs for ourselves?”
While President Bola Tinubu has urged Nigerians to be patient, assuring that ongoing reforms will stabilise the economy over time, many citizens say their immediate concern is how to put food on the table.
“We hope things improve in the future, but for now, we can only buy what we can afford,” Onyedika added.
