Falling Foodstuff Prices And The Retailers’ Recalcitrance
By Abdullahi Yusuf
Throughout the year 2024 up to the first quarter of 2025, most Nigerians passed through a harrowing experience purchasing foodstuff and other essential commodities at cut-throat prices,no thanks to the depreciating value of the Naira and the withdrawal of fuel subsidy.
During that trying period,the citizens bought foodstuff especially rice, maize,millet and noodles at prohibitive prices, which caused hunger and malnutrition in the land.
For instance,a quality local brand of rice sold for up to N100,000 per 50 Kilogramme bag, while foreign rice went for up to N120,000,and maize was purchased at N80,000 per bag,depending on the locations of the purchases.
Such prices became so prohibitive that ordinary Nigerians considerably avoided the staple foodstuff and resorted to prayers for divine intervention which obviously began to manifest around the second quarter of the year 2025.
Suddenly, reports filtered in that prices of maize,rice, sorghum and millet had crashed in rural markets with the foodstuff selling at far below the exorbitant rates they had been bought several months back.
This sweet development,it was gathered, sent jitters down the spine of foodstuff hoarders and price speculators,and before one could say,”Masha Allah,” the perpetrators released the commodities back into the markets in Wudil,Lahadin Makole,Darki and Takai, among others.
The hoarders had during the cropping seasons of 2023 and 2024 dastardly gone to the farms in various parts of Kano and the neighbouring States and bought over large stocks of grains at their germination stage, especially maize, millet,rice and beans,only to later harvest and store them in their warehouses with the cruel aim of reselling them at ultra high prices to the helpless consumers.
They now resorted to the panic measure so as not to incur losses on their wares, unfortunately for them but fortunately for us, the consumers,the prices kept going down because Allah(SWT) had answered our prayers.
All the grains are now selling far below the prices they sold during the “Hurricane” period in the rural markets with maize for instance,now going for less than N2,000 as against close to N3,000,beans selling at N2,200 as against N5,000 before.
Also in the rural markets, a good brand of locally produced rice now sells for N2,300 as against N3,500, while millet that sold for N2,500 now goes for much less than N2,000.
However,most retailers of these grains, especially those in Kano metropolis wickedly continue to sell these grains at exorbitant prices, giving flimsy excuses such as high transportation costs caused by the increase in fuel prices.
Another unacceptable reason the retailers give is that they still have old stocks of the foodstuff in their stores which they must dispose off before they sell at the new prices.
But anytime grains dealers in the major markets increase the prices of their wares,the retailers are quick to hike the rates of the foodstuff they have in stock for several weeks.
The retailers have refused to reduce the prices commensurate with the new rates at which the dealers are selling the commodities to them,still selling rice at more than N3,000 per measure,maize at more than N2,000, among other hikes.
And they have continued to,with impunity, commit the act despite appeals from the consumers with whom they share neighbourhoods,and other concerned stakeholders.
Meanwhile,the 2025 harvesting season has just set in with new stocks of millet,maize,beans and groundnuts gradually flooding the markets, bringing another prospect for further price crash.
Surely,the grains dealers will leverage the seemingly bumper harvest by, as usual, rushing to the rural markets to purchase the foodstuff and resell them to the retailers in our urban settlements,most likely at new low prices.
Just as it has been observed that many consumers have embarked on “self help,”visiting the rural markets and buying the foodstuff at source and at much cheaper rates.
The rest have resigned to fate, purchasing food items at the prices dictated by the retailers,but praying for a divine intervention, which will surely come, soonest.
In their characteristic selves, the retailers are unlikely going to make any favourable price adjustments on the new arrivals.They might continue to profiteer on the foodstuff, giving the usual explanations.May Allah deliver us from their clutches.