The Kano State Chairperson of Tomato Out Growers Association of Nigeria (TOGAN), Sani Danladi, has said the high price of tomatoes in Nigerian markets is due to the commencement of the off-season period and slow production.
Mr Danladi, in an interview with PREMIUM TIMES on Monday, explained that the supply of tomatoes has reduced significantly compared to last year, with prices expected to remain high until September when tomato season begins.
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In recent weeks, households in Nigeria have had to dig deeper into their pockets to buy tomatoes and pepper, as prices have risen sharply.
“There is the issue of Sallah celebration holidays for the past 2-3 weeks. Second thing is, it’s not the peak season. Even if there is no Sallah, the supply will not be as much as it was before.
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“Because the production is slow now. So, we are just preparing now. Then it started to rain. So, some people are going back to the farm. Some have started transplanting. So, we have to manage it from now until September. That is when the tomatoes will be available again. But for now, that’s how it is,” Mr Danladi said.
The National President of Tomato Out Growers Association of Nigeria (TOGAN), Abdulahi Ringim, noted that the price hike is a natural phenomenon due to the seasonal nature of tomato production.
He added that a massive outbreak of Tuta Absoluta, a pest that devastated tomato farms in several states, including Kano, Kaduna, and Jos earlier in the year, is also a major cause.
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“Tomatoes are seasonal product. So at times tomatoes are expensive, at other times tomatoes are not expensive due to the seasonal nature of the produce. The second reason was that there was an outbreak of tomato ebola. This year, in particular, there was a massive outbreak of tomato ebola called Tuta Absoluta, and it wiped out so many farms in Kano, in Kaduna, in Jos, and we have reported that even to the Ministry of Agriculture, they promised intervention and we are still waiting for that,” he said.
Additionally, he said transportation costs have increased due to the hike in fuel prices and multiple checkpoints along highways, where truck drivers are often forced to pay bribes or face delays, leading to spoilage of the perishable produce.
“The third reason is transportation cost. If you want to transport tomatoes from Kano, for instance, to Abuja, or to Mile 12 in Lagos, or to Port Harcourt, you incur three costs. One, is the increased in the cost of petroleum. That escalated the transportation costs. Along the lines, states and local governments are stopping our tomato trucks. At the time they stop the trucks, they know that tomatoes are a perishable food, so you either bribe them, or they delay you and the tomato gets rotten.
“We have complained, and there doesn’t seem to be any serious assistance. So, of course, by the time you add the cost of transportation, the money you pay as bribery to the road marshals, the money you pay officially as levies and taxes that are illegal because you are applying federal rules, the price of tomato will have to go up.”
He added that there is the issue of tomato policy. He stated that the government and some officials have jettisoned the policy.
“And when they jettison the policy, the whole problem is that people smuggle this tomato. They don’t pay the levies, they don’t pay the dues. So, they dump it. And when they dump it, of course, by the time you buy and bring it, even if it’s smuggled, you are buying it in a compatible dollar. Like I said before, tomatoes have two seasons. It has the rainy season and it has the dry season. So, we are hoping that with the coming of the rain, some areas, especially south of the Niger, and part of the middle belt, they will start producing the rain-fed tomato.
“So, the price will start coming down and the rain-fed tomatoes will start coming out. The price is expected to go down. But this seasonality will continue. And until these issues are addressed enough, then we’ll continue to have an occurrence of this problem every year. There’s just no doubt about that,” he added.
Market survey
A market survey conducted by this reporter in the Federal Capital Territory showed that the price of tomatoes had skyrocketed over a few weeks.
At the AMAC market in Lugbe, Abuja, a tomato dealer known as Bonanza Bonanza attributed the increase in prices to seasonality.
He said a basket of tomatoes, which sold for between N45,000 and N50,000 earlier in the year, now sells for between N90,000 and N100,000 while one full ‘dustbin’ basket goes for N5,000 as against N2,000 it was sold before.
Buyers are equally distressed by the rising prices.
Mrs Adelani Jumoke, a consumer, lamented over the soaring prices.
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“I used to buy N500 tomato and N200 pepper to make stew for my family of four before. But on Saturday, I went to the market to buy tomato and pepper only to realise that there is no N500 tomato again. The tomato seller said the tomato is from N1,500 upwards. And tatase that I used to buy for N200 is now N1,000 and pepper is now from N500 upwards too.”
Muhammadu Sani, a tomato dealer in Ido Ekiti, told this newspaper that the increase in prices is due to the planting season.
“If you notice, you will realise that by this time every year, prices of tomatoes used to go up. This is because it’s seasonal and this is the planting season,” he said.
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