Business
Housewives Lament As Tomato Prices Soar
Published
2 years agoon
By
Editor
Some housewives in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja on Sunday said they have ditched tomatoes for their stews and other sauces as cost skyrockets.
The residents, who made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, said they have resorted to using garden eggplants and carrots in their stews.
They said garden egg, called “ganyen gauta” in Hausa, “igba” in Yoruba, and “anyara” in Igbo, could blend very well with rice in the same manner as tomatoes.
Others said they were exploring pumpkin, pawpaw, or traditional soups like white soup and palm fruit soup popularly called banga soup in place of tomato stew.
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Mrs Jumai Amodu, a mother of five, said a week without rice with tomato stew was unfulfilling for her and the family.
She said rice with stew was a regular on their menu, adding that “there is an unexplainable satisfaction that comes with taking cooked rice and stew.”
The mother of five, however, said with the scarcity and high cost of tomatoes, her family was exploring garden egg stew.
Amodu said, “Since tomatoes became very expensive, we decided to use garden egg for stew and it is as sweet as tomato stew.
“The only major difference between garden egg stew and tomato stew is the colour.
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“We also use pumpkin stew with rice sometimes and although it has its unique taste, it blends well with rice.”
Mrs Helen Omo, a businesswoman, said although tomato stew was an important recipe in almost all homes in Nigeria, its scarcity had made some Nigerians think of alternatives.
“I went to the market yesterday to get some tomatoes for stew and a sizeable bushel, which costs between N2000 and N2500 was being sold for as much as N6500.
“I did not bother to haggle the price because it was way beyond my budget,” she said.
Mr Chinedu, an entrepreneur, told NAN that he enjoyed taking rice with pepper soup or white soup.
“The prices of all foodstuff have gone up but that of tomatoes is outrageous probably because it is tomatoes off-season.
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“Besides being expensive, it is very scarce and as a result, we decided to explore other recipes,” he said.
Umar Adamu, a tomatoes retailer in Nyanya market in the FCT, said he had stopped retailing tomatoes for some days due to low patronage.
He said customers were not “patronising him because of the high cost.”
Mrs Rukkaya Umar, Chief Executive Officer, Abraks Farm Produce Nigeria Limited said the primary reason for the scarcity of tomatoes was the high cost of fertiliser.
According to her, many tomato farmers do not grow it because they cannot afford fertiliser, adding that fertiliser was critical to its growth.
Umar also said reliance on seasonal farming was one of the reasons for the scarcity, adding that it was tomatoes off-season.
“Most farmers in Nigeria still do seasonal farming and that is contributing greatly to scarcity of farm produce particularly in their off-seasons,” she said.
NAN reports that a sizeable basket of tomatoes which hitherto sold for about N10,000 now sells for about N35,000 while big baskets cost more.
NAN
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The Naira experienced a slight depreciation on Friday at the official market, trading at N1,528.56 to the dollar.
Data obtained from the website of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed that the Naira lost N2.73.
This represents a 0.17 percent loss compared to the N1,525.82 recorded on Thursday.
READ ALSO:Naira Appreciates At Official Market
The Naira, which opened the week on Monday with a gain of N9.52 against the dollar, held steady gains until Thursday.
On Wednesday, the local currency gained N3.42 against the dollar and received commendation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The IMF, in its 2025 Article IV Consultation report on Nigeria, commended the CBN for its reforms to the foreign exchange market, which supported price discovery and liquidity.
Business
JUST IN: Dangote Refinery Hikes Petrol Ex-depot Price
Published
2 weeks agoon
June 20, 2025By
Editor
Nigerians may soon pay more for petrol as the Dangote Petroleum Refinery on Friday increased its ex-depot price for Premium Motor Spirit to N880 per litre, raising fresh concerns over fuel affordability and price volatility in the downstream sector.
Checks on petroleumprice.ng, a platform tracking daily product prices, and a Pro Forma Invoice seen by The PUNCH confirmed the hike, representing a N55 increase from the previous rate of N825 per litre.
The increment would ripple across the entire fuel distribution chain, likely pushing pump prices above N900/litre in some parts of the country, especially in areas far from the distribution hubs.
The hike comes despite global crude prices falling. Brent crude dipped by 3.02% to $76.47, WTI fell to $74.93, and Murban dropped to $76.97 on Friday. The decline in benchmarks offers little relief due to persistent fears of sudden supply disruptions.
READ ALSO: JUST IN: Dangote Refinery Sashes Petrol Gantry Price
The refinery has increased its reliance on imported U.S. crude and operational costs amid exchange rate instability, which adds to its pricing pressure.
On Thursday, the President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, said his 650,000-barrel capacity refinery is “increasingly” relying on the United States for crude oil.
This came as findings showed that the Dangote Petroleum Refinery is projected to import a total of 17.65 million barrels of crude oil between April and July 2025, beginning with about 3.65 million barrels already delivered in the past two months, amid ongoing allocations under the Federal Government’s naira-for-crude policy.
Dangote informed the Technical Committee of the One-Stop Shop for the sale of crude and refined products in naira initiative that the refinery was still battling crude shortages, which had led it to resort to imports from the United States.
READ ALSO:Dangote Stops Petrol Sale In Naira, Gives Condition For Resumption
On Monday, the president of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, Festus Osifo, accused oil marketers of exploiting Nigerians through inflated petrol prices, insisting that the current pump price of PMS should range between N700 and N750 per litre.
He criticised the disparity between falling global crude oil prices and the stagnant retail price of petrol in Nigeria.
“If you go online and check the PLAT cost per cubic metre of PMS, convert that to litres and then to our Naira, you will see that with crude at around $60 per barrel, petrol should be retailing between N700 and N750 per litre.”
He asserted that if Nigerians bear the brunt of higher fuel costs, they should be allowed to enjoy the benefit of low pricing.
His forecast of increased costs now appears spot on, considering the latest developments.
Marketers are already adjusting. Depot owners and fuel distributors in Lagos and other cities anticipate a domino effect, with new price bands expected to follow Dangote’s lead.
Many had held back pricing decisions since Tuesday, when the refinery halted sales and withheld fresh PFIs. The delay fueled speculation, allowing opportunistic price hikes across various depots.

The Naira, which has seen steady appreciation against the Dollar all week, closed stronger on Friday, trading at ₦1,580.44 in the official forex market.
Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s website show the Naira gained ₦4.51k against the Dollar on Friday alone.
This marks a 0.28 per cent appreciation from Thursday’s closing rate of ₦1,584.95 in the official foreign exchange window.
The local currency maintained consistent strength throughout the week, recording gains daily.
READ ALSO: Naira Appreciates Against Dollar At Foreign Exchange Market
On Monday, May 19, it traded at ₦1,598.68; on Tuesday, at ₦1,590.45; and on Wednesday, at ₦1,584.49.
These gains suggest increased investor confidence and improved forex supply, contributing to the naira’s performance.
Meanwhile, the CBN, at its 300th Monetary Policy Committee meeting held Monday and Tuesday, retained the Monetary Policy Rate at 27.5 per cent.
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