Nigerian government urges retailers to reduce food prices

The Nigerian government has urged retailers to reflect the continuing reduction in food prices in their sales.

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The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, made the appeal on Tuesday at the 2025 Wheat Farmers Green Field Day, which was organised by the Jigawa State Government at Dabi in the Ringim Local Government Area.

“The federal government is aware of the significant drop in the prices of (foods) across major markets, particularly for essential commodities such as floor sugar rice and spaghetti.

“However, it is deeply concerning that many retailers, bakers, and shop owners have refused to reflect this reduction in their selling prices, thereby denying Nigerians the relief they deserve.

“In previous months, stakeholders in the food supply chain raised concern over rising prices of food items. Now that the prices have dropped, flour for instance, has fallen from N81,000 per bag to below N60,000 and Spaghetti from N20,000 to N15,000. It’s only fair and just that consumers benefit from this reduction.

“The government is committed to ensuring food affordability and will continue to engage with relevant stakeholders to address this issue. I urged all retailers and traders to reflect the current market realities in their pricing and act in good faith to ease the burden of Nigerians.

“Exploitation of consumers at a time when relief is needed is most unpatriotic, and it’s unacceptable,” Mr Kyari stated.

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Mr Kyari announced a federal government donation of 10,000 water pumping machines, 10,000 pieces of sprayers, 10,000 litres of herbicides, 10,000 litres of insecticide, 10,000 organic fertilisers, and other items worth N5 billion to support farmers in Jigawa State.

In his remarks, Governor Umar Namadi commended the federal government for its support of farmers in the state.

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The state’s commissioner for agriculture, Muttaka Namadi, said a transformation in wheat production started in Jigawa State last year with the federal government’s special allocation of agricultural inputs to 80,000 farmers at a subsidized rate. He said the farmers cultivated 40,000 hectares of wheat.

The commissioner said that to complement the federal government’s effort; the state government supported 16,454 farmers with a N2.23 billion loan, which they agreed to pay back after harvest.

Mr Namadi said the project was successful, with an 80 per cent recovery rate and attracted revenue of over N8 billion to the state’s economy.