Rising Food Prices Force Ondo Households To Cut Meals, Budgets

Rising food prices are forcing households in Ondo State to adjust their feeding habits, with some residents reducing the quantity of food they buy and others cutting down on the number of meals they eat daily.

A market survey by LEADERSHIP at Oja Oba Market in Akure, the state capital, showed that essential food items, including rice, cooking oil, onions and meat, remain expensive, putting pressure on household budgets.

The survey revealed that a bag of foreign rice sells for about N84,000, while Nigerian stoneless rice goes for N61,000. A five-litre container of cooking oil sells for N18,200.

The price of a kilogramme of meat, which previously sold for N7,000, has also risen to N8,500, while onions are sold at five to six pieces for N1,000.

However, traders said pepper was relatively cheap, while tomatoes remained moderately available.

An onion seller, Ahmed, attributed the high cost of onions to seasonal factors, expressing optimism that prices would improve when the next harvest begins.

‎“Onion is still very expensive now because this is not its season. However, we expect that by December, we will start harvesting onions and it will be okay,” he said.

‎A rice seller, Aminat Olaiya, said rice prices fluctuated almost daily, with foreign rice selling between N80,000 and N95,000 per bag and Nigerian rice going for between N60,000 and N65,000.

‎She blamed part of the increase on transportation costs arising from high fuel prices, explaining that the cost of moving goods to the market affected their selling prices.

‎For consumers, the rising cost of food has translated into difficult choices over how much to spend and what to buy.

‎A resident, Mr Idowu Isaiah, said the amount he allocated for his household’s weekly feeding had increased significantly, yet it was no longer enough to maintain their previous standard of living.

‎“Before, I used to give my wife N10,000 for a week, but it is no longer enough and I have to increase it to N15,000. Even with that, we have to reduce the quantity of what we used to buy,” he said.

‎Another resident, Mrs Tijani, said the high cost of food had forced her household to reduce its daily meals from three to two.

‎“Before, we used to eat three times a day, but because of the high cost of foodstuffs, we have reduced it to two times a day, which is morning and evening,” she said.

‎She added that when members of her household became hungry in the afternoon, they resorted to drinking garri, made from cassava, to manage until the evening meal.

‎The accounts of the residents showed the pressure that food prices are placing on household consumption, as families struggle to stretch limited resources to meet their daily needs.