…as consumers paid 23.22% higher on average price of white beans/kg
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria’s statistical system coordinating agency, reported on Monday that prices of selected food items increased year-on-year in July this year.
The Bureau, in its ‘Selected Food Prices Watch Report for July 2022’ hinted that the average price of 1kg of white beans rose by 23.22 percent from N444.21 in July 2021 to N547.38 in July 2022.
Similarly, it confirmed in the report that on a month-on-month basis, the price increased by 2.09 percent from N536.17 in June 2022 to N547.38 in July 2022.
According to the Bureau, the average price of 1kg of tomatoes increased on a year-on-year basis by 7.71 per cent from N414.83 in July 2021 to N446.81 in July 2022 while average price of 1kg beef (boneless) in July 2022 was N2,118.84, representing an increase of 27.58 per cent from the N1,660.76 recorded in July 2021.
The agency further reported that average price of a bottle of groundnut oil stood at N1,078.17 in July 2022, representing an increase of 40.24 per cent from N768.81 in the corresponding month of last year.
In addition, it stated that the average price of 1kg of local rice increased on a year-on-year basis by 13.55 per cent from N411.97 in July 2021 to N467.80 in July 2022 while the average price of one bottle of palm oil stood at N890.67 in July 2022, showing an increase of 40.19 per cent from the N635.31 recorded in July 2021.
An analysis of the Selected Food Prices Watch report on state-by-state basis indicated that Ebonyi State recorded the highest average price of 1kg of white beans in July 2022 at N900.51, while the lowest price was recorded in Borno State at N317.73.
The report further showed that the highest average price of 1kg of tomato was recorded in Edo at N799.16, while the lowest was recorded in Taraba at N159.14 while Rivers recorded the highest price of 1kg of local rice at N619.62, while the lowest was recorded in Jigawa at N363.34.
A further appraisal of the report by zones reflected that the South East zone recorded the highest average price of brown beans at N853.19 per kilogramme, followed by the South West zone at N598.00, while the North East zone recorded the lowest price at N379.03.
The South East zone consumers paid the highest average price of tomato at N678.80, per kilogramme, followed by the North West zone at N656.93, while the lowest price for the commodity was recorded in the North East zone at N194.72.
The NBS further reported that the average price of 1kg of local rice in the North West zone was N796.03, representing the highest recorded in July 2022, followed by the South West zone at N519.64 while the North Central zone consumers paid lowest price for 1kg of local rice at N401.72.
