As the curtains begin their descent on 2022, food, a basic need for human existence, is increasingly out of reach for more Nigerians. The prices of staples like yam, maize, rice, and fish have continued to rise.
This development is heaping financial pressure on households already faced with shrinking purchasing power and a stagnant economy.
For the 133 million multi-dimensionally poor Nigerians, which is about 63 percent of the population, as big as the population of Belgium (11.5million), Netherlands (17.1 million), Portugal (10.1 million), Greece (10.4 million ), Sweden (10 million) and the United Kingdom (67 million) combined, this is an inescapable reality.
The number of Nigerians who can afford basic food items is shrinking because their disposable income has been falling since 2015.
The latest data on nominal prices of 43 food items sampled by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed that average food prices increased from N928.16 in September to N942.13 in October.
This implies that nominal food prices increased by 1.51 percent in October 2022 over September.
Economists and investments experts who spoke to Dataphyte say the sudden rise in the prices of virtually all staples means food is becoming a luxury item for many Nigerians. In the struggle to eat, Nigerians will spend more of their income on food at the expense of other basic needs, like health.
“Nigeria has gradually erased its middle class with the controllable increase in the price of goods and services,” said Kelvin Ogbeide, associate and investment researcher with one of Nigeria’s ‘Big four’ consulting firms.
“If you juxtapose the sustained drive in the prices of food and other commodities with stagnant income or, most cases, disappearing income, you will see that the standard of living of many Nigerians has deteriorated,” Ogbeide explained via phone.
“Nigeria is heading to a threshold where it is either you are poor or rich.”
Other experts say although items such as transportation and medical services have continued to push general commodity prices up, the rise in food prices has been the main driver of the rising inflationary pressure.
Food prices have headed north due to supply chain disruptions caused by recent flooding activities, high input costs such as fertilisers, and the devaluation of the naira, resulting in imported inflation.
Prices of Foods Across Categories Continue to Rise
The prices of oil foods recorded the highest price increase in October 2022. Average nominal prices of oil products sold at the market across the country increased from N1038.85 in September to N1078.06 in October. This shows a 3.77 percent increase in the prices of oil products.
Three of the 43 food items sampled in October were oil foods. The nominal price of groundnut oil increased from N 1,113.33 in September to N1159.34 in October, a 4.13% increase. That of palm oil increased from N927.34 in September to N968.76 in October, representing a 4.47% price increase. Vegetable oil recorded the least price change. It increased from N1,075.89 in September to N1106.08 in October, a 2.81% increase.
Staple Foods
The nominal prices of the twelve staple foods surveyed by Dataphyte showed the prices of staple foods increased by 1.9 percent from N520.59 in September to N530.50 in October 2022. The food items surveyed include different varieties of beans, rice, garri, maize, and wheat.
Local rice had the highest price change among staple foods. The price increased from N471.42 in September to N487.47 in October 2022. This represented a 3.4 percent increase in local rice prices between September and October 2022.
Brown beans increased from N556.81 in September to N564.69 in October 2022, a 1.41 percent increase. That of white maize increased by 0.85 percent from N302.22 in September to N304.55 in October.
Amongst the 12 sampled staple foods, only ofada (broken) rice recorded a price decrease. The price dropped marginally from N538.98 in September to N538.19 in October.
Price Increase in Tubers
The three tuber food samples show that the average nominal price increased from N382.93 in September to N394.04 in October, a 2.9 percent price increase.
Irish potato recorded the highest price increase in this category as its price increased by 4.91 percent over the month, from N484.33 in September to N508.13 in October 2022.
Yam tuber prices were more stable price, increasing marginally by 0.15 percent from N409.23 in September to N409.86 in October. Sweet potato increased by 3.49 percent in October, from N255.24 in September to N264.14.
Proteinous Food
The prices of 19 sampled proteinous food items increased from N1415.66 in September to N1430.13 in October. This shows that the prices in this category increased by 1.02 percent over the month.
This category contains food items like chicken, beef, fish, egg, and milk in different varieties.
Evaporated milk experienced the highest price change in this category. The price increased from N248.94 in September to N265.87 in October, a 6.8% increase.
Of the 19 foods sampled in this category, fourteen recorded an increase in October over September, only five experienced a fall in prices. Different fish varieties recorded a fall in price, including frozen mackerel, smoked catfish, fresh mudfish, fresh Titus, and dried sardine.
Other Food Items
In the unclassified food category, the prices of five food items collectively increased from N416.82 in September to N426.13 in October. This category, which comprises bread, tomatoes, onions, and plantain, recorded a 2.24 price increase.
The price of ripe plantain recorded the highest price change of 3.27% from N345.90 in September to N357.20 in October.
A loaf of sliced bread increased from N511.74 in September to N523.16 in October. This price increase represents a 2.23 percent change in price in October 2022 over that of September 2022.
Three months ago, the number of Nigerians classified as poor increased when the World Bank raised the poverty line to $2.15 (N936.32) from $1.90 (N827.45).
With prices of basic food items rising as income falls, the poor become poorer, widening inequality and heightening social imbalance.
This is part of the legacy of President Muhammadu Buhari as he prepares to leave office next May. Two economic recessions in five years and a hungrier and poorer country are the outcomes of his promise to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty.
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