By Ashemiriogwa Emmanuel
The average price of a kilogram (Kg) of rice (imported high quality sold loose) reduced from N557.98 in June to N552.80 in July 2021, indicating a 0.9 per cent drop.
Data on the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) Selected Food Prices Watch Report (July 2021), however, revealed that the average cost of the staple grain in the market increased year-on-year by 12.7 per cent as it went from N490.44 a year ago to N552.80 in the period under review.
The food crop similarly witnessed an average price increase in other variations of which it is largely produced across the country.
In the report, the average price of 1kg broken rice, popularly known as Ofada, increased by 1.1 per cent to N477.08 from N472.07 in June, while on a year-on-year basis, it rose by 11.9 per cent from N426.36.
It was disclosed that Lagos State recorded the highest increase in the average cost of 1kg Ofada rice at N844.13, while the lowest was in Nassarawa State at N270.46.
The stats office further said that Nigerians paid N456 to purchase 1kg of medium-grained rice, 1.9 per cent higher than N441.49 it was sold in June and 11.0 per cent higher than the price a year ago.
In Bayelsa State, residents bought the medium-grained rice at N602.57 per kg, the highest in the country, while the lowest price was paid by those living in Adamawa State at N288.67 per kg.
A look at the average price of brown beans in the period under consideration, it stood at N485.44/kg, 3.01 per cent more than N439.22 in June.
The grain recorded the highest average price in Enugu State at N896.32 per kg, while residents of Bauchi State bought it at an average price of N211.4 per kg, the lowest in the country.
Similarly, its alternative, white black-eyed Beans was sold for N444.21/kg, 2.9 per cent higher than N431.79 it was sold a month earlier, while people in Enugu bought the food item at N782.04/kg with residents of Bauchi paying N214.07 for the same measurement.
As for Nigeria’s most popular carbohydrate staple, Garri, the average price of its white variant went up by 1.5 per cent in July to N329.20 per kg from N324.26 per kg in June, with the lowest and highest average cost of the product recorded in Taraba (N208.4) and Ebonyi (N500.96) respectively.
The yellow Garri was relatively sold on average for N347.70 per kg, 2.6 per cent higher than the price a month earlier, while the highest average price stood at N540.47 in Ebonyi and the lowest at N216.28) in Kwara state.
NBS said in the report that the average price of 1kg of yam tuber increased month-on-month by 7.4 per cent to N308.72 in July from N287.54 in June 2021 as Ekiti recorded the highest average price of N532.47 and the lowest in Taraba at N111.98.
As for its alternative, Irish potatoes, the average cost increased to N380.21 from N356.44 within the period as consumers bought it at the highest average price in Bayelsa at N837.24 and lowest in Plateau State at N154.76.
The food price report further said there was a 5.9 per cent rise in the average price of beef (boneless) to N1,660.76 per kg in July from N1,567.26 per kg in the previous month.
The highest average price was in Ebonyi at N2,416.8, while the lowest average cost was in Gombe State at N1,232.95.
According to the report, a litre of groundnut oil was sold on average for N768.81 in July, 5.5 per cent higher than the N728.43 it was sold in the preceding month. However, Kogi State recorded the lowest price at N495.8, while the highest was in Delta State at N1,222.96.
Similarly, the average price for palm oil rose by 4.3 per cent within the reference period from N609.21 per litre to N635.31 per litre in June 2021, while the highest price was in Lagos at N810 and the lowest price in Kwara at N406.67.
In the period under review, the price of 1kg of tomatoes significantly increased by 23.7 per cent to N414.83 from N335.46 in June. Given that tomato farming is predominantly done in the northern part of the country, Adamawa recorded the lowest average price of N102.41, while the highest was in Edo at N836.68.
Adedapo Adesanya 
Dipo Olowookere