Lagos has seen a 200% surge in tomato prices due to the recent Tuta Absoluta outbreak in some farmlands in Kaduna and Kano, two of the country’s main tomato-growing states.
In addition, Business Day reported that analysts say the price increase is due to seasonality since tomato crops perform poorly during the rainy season, and prices are always predicted to rise during that time.
According to a market survey, a large basket of fresh tomatoes at Mile 12 Market in Lagos now sells for between N100,000 and N150,000, depending on negotiation and quality, compared to N40,000 and N50,000 in April and early May.
According to Sani Danladi, national chairman of the Association of Tomato Growers, Processors and Marketers Association of Nigeria, the invasion of farmlands in major growing states by the Tuta Absoluta pest is the main cause of the high cost of tomatoes in the nation.
He added that the crop does not perform well during the rainy season because of the early onset of the rainy season.
Tuta Absabsolutas has a reputation for swiftly ravaging tomato cultivation in just over 48 hours, prompting farmers to nickname it Tomato Ebola.
It can breed between 10-12 generations in a year with the female capable of laying between 250 to 300 eggs within its lifetime.
Tasiu Haruna, a local tomato farmer in Kaduna, explained that climate change is also a significant challenge affecting crop production in the north.
Since 2015, the country has yearly suffered from the outbreak of Tuta and experts say that the recurrence of Tomato Ebola without any solution to tackle it at a national scale in Nigeria shows that relevant authorities seem helpless on preventive measures.
Data and research analyst Loren Agwulonu stated that she is left searching for alternatives due to increased tomato costs.
Agwulonu expressed her surprise at receiving four pieces of fresh fruit for N500 in the Ago Palace neighbourhood of Lagos.
In a post on the X platform, Agriculture minister, Abubakar Kyari, stated that as part of its effort to regulate tomato prices, the federal government is making every effort to stop the disease’s spread.
He said:
TimesNow.com.ng earlier reported a new report by the National Bureau of Statistics which showed an increase in the price of various food items in Nigeria.
According to Selected Food Price Watch, the average cost of one kilogram of locally marketed loose rice in April 2024 was N1,399.34.
This showed that the price increased by 155.93% year over year from 546.76 in April 2023 and 3.47% month over month from N1,340.74 in March 2024.
Proofreading by James Ojo Adakole, journalist and copy editor at TimesNow.com.ng.
Source: TimesNow.com.ng
