Have you noticed how expensive tomatoes and peppers are these days?
When it comes to cooking essentials, tomatoes and peppers are indispensable, but the prices these days are wild.
In Nigeria, pepper and tomatoes are gotten from Northern States like Katsina, Kano, Jigawa, and Gombe States.
According to reports from Punch:
A basket of tomatoes is currently selling for ₦40,000 and it was ₦23,000 at the start of the year.A crate of tomatoes costs ₦24,000 as opposed to ₦7,000, and the price of a paint bucket of same increased to ₦4,500 from ₦1,000. A basket of scotch bonnet peppers (atarodo) costs ₦3,000 now. Previously, they were ₦1,000 at the start of the year.
Why is this?
Cost of transport
Transportation from the north to other parts of the Nigeria has more than doubled. The increase in fuel pump prices has made interstate and intrastate transport double their initial prices, and this affects the transportation of goods.
The prices of tomatoes have skyrocketed [wikicommons]
Tomato Ebola
The prices of tomatoes and peppers initially increased early this year due to a disease known as Tuta absoluta (Tomato Ebola) that affected produce in the North. In the last five months, this disease has affected 1.3 million hectares of tomatoes and many farmers are avoiding investing in the crop.
Dr Deola Lordbanjoce, Director of Horticulture at the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, stated that “the current crisis with Tuta Absoluta began in Galama Local Government in Kano.”
“When it was reported, we began an investigation and discovered that approximately 300 hectares in that Local Government alone were affected by this infestation.”
Rain
There is usually a scarcity of tomatoes during the rainy season. This year has seen torrential rainfall. The rainy season has caused us significant losses because harvested tomatoes and peppers perish once they come into contact with water.
The rains have damaged the majority of the gathered produce, so the quantities entering the states are limited.
Incidentally, the prices of Tomatoes in India are also astronomically high too. The present high prices can be linked back to a precipitous drop in April and May, which caused many growers to abandon their crops.
What can be used in place of fresh tomatoes?
This shortage just shows how government needs to pay more attention to agriculture since food is integral to life. Tomato paste and canned tomatoes have always been a trusted alternative in the main time.
