With the rising rate of inflation in Nigeria and its attendant effects on citizens, a new report has emerged showing that residents of Lagos State now spend a significant portion of their income on groceries and food.
According to the report, stew ingredients in Lagos cost ₦6,902 in 2022 but rose to ₦8,060 in 2023, representing a 16.77 per cent increase. Meanwhile, a minimum wage earner in Lagos who gets ₦30,000 monthly would need, at least, 106 per cent of his or her salary to prepare stew once a week for a month in 2023.
The inaugural Stew Index Report put together by PricePally, an online grocery store operating in three Nigerian cities, analysed the cost of stew ingredients and submitted that the price of meat has also significantly gone up with Lagos now the most expensive state in Nigeria.
The Stew Index Report also revealed that fiscal policies, including fuel subsidy removal, cash scarcity and the foreign exchange crisis are the main factors affecting food pricing in 2023.
Speaking on the impact of the Stew Index Report, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Co-founder of PricePally, Luther Lawoyin, welcomed the intervention plan for food security initiated by the Federal Government recently, describing it as a positive step for curbing food insecurity.
Lawoyin highlighted logistics and preservation as factors causing farmers to lose over half of their harvest.
“I believe we can cut down the cost of food by 25 per cent or more if we dedicate some of our trains to food transportation,” Lawoyin said.
