Lagos residents are expressing concerns over the continued increase in the price of beans, their major source of protein.
They noted that the consistent rise in the price of beans since 2024 had become unbearable, urging governments to intervene.
The residents voiced their worries in interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Lagos.
NAN reports that a 40kg bag of beans, which sold for N26,000 in January, now sells for N115,000, while a 100kg bag, which sold for N55,000 at the beginning of the year, now sells for N230,000.
This surge has made the staple food beyond the reach of many residents.
Mrs. Uloma Chigozirim, a housewife and mother of four on Santos Estate, Akowonjo, expressed concern that children might be malnourished due to the high increase in the price of beans.
“Beans used to be the cheapest food; now, we do not even understand what is going on.
“Every other week, the price keeps going up; even traders cannot tell us the reason for the hike.
“Beans used to be the cheapest source of protein for the average resident, but the produce is now too expensive to afford.
“We really need government intervention, else many of us will be malnourished,” Chigozirim said.
Mr. Uche Ikenga, a beans farmer at the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, hinted at a possible reason for the hike in the price of the produce, noting that the harvest time for beans is usually at the end of the year.
“It has its time for cultivation.
“The peak period for beans harvest is usually at the end of the year. Then we have enough supply to meet the growing demand.
“However, during the harvest time, some cattle forage everywhere for food.
“Last year, many farmers lost their harvest because their beans farms were consumed by the foraging cows.
“The produce is scarce and expensive this year because the harvest last year was low,” Ikenga said.
Mr. Ahmed Yusuf, a beans trader at the Dry Foodstuff Section of Ile-Epo Market, Agege, shared concerns that beans might become unavailable in the coming months.
“We sold a small bucket of beans for N6,500 last two weeks, but now the same quantity sells for N8,000.
“The price keeps soaring every day, and we sell as we buy. We no longer keep because of the price unpredictability.
“We are not even sure if we will have beans to sell by this time next month because the produce is unavailable,” he said.
Yusuf told NAN that the demand for beans had been high, but farmers did not have enough because many of them could not cultivate crops this year.
“There is nothing we can do about the price hike; it has gone beyond our control,” Yusuf said.
Mrs. Bunmi Arowolo, a seller of jewellery, called for the intervention of the federal and Lagos State governments in the situation.
“Early in May, I bought a paint (small) bucket of beans for N7,500, as against N3,000 previously.
“As a common form of protein, I now manage the little quantity for my family.
“I want to appeal to the governments to tackle insecurity so that farmers can return to their farms and make the produce available and affordable,” Arowolo said.
Ms. Adaeze Oparaku, a nutritionist at the Lagos Teaching Hospital (LUTH), emphasized the importance of beans in Nigerians’ diets.
“The produce is an essential source of protein, carbohydrates, and dietary fiber for both adults and children.
“It contains micronutrients such as the Vitamin Bs and is a good source of minerals such as phosphorus, copper, manganese, and iron.
“Beans should be a regular staple in children’s diets, if they like it.
“However, given the rise in the price of the produce, it can be substituted with other protein sources in children’s meals,” she said.
Mrs. Eugenia Uloma, a trader at the popular Kotangora Market in Abule-Egba area, said that beans had been a major part of the Nigerian diet and important to every Nigerian.
“The produce is so expensive, but we still buy the quantity we can afford because it is our major source of protein.
“Other protein sources are even more expensive.
“We do not need so much from the government; if it can address this growing food inflation, we will be grateful.
“Let us just have food to eat; that is what most of us are asking. We need to feed our families to live, especially the children,” Uloma said.
Mrs. Barinedum Legbara, a vegetable farmer, called for adequate planning for increased local production of beans.
“We buy beans as a basic necessity in our diet. The government should do something about the beans issue.
“We need adequate planning for the strategic cultivation of beans to avoid this scarcity and hike.
“We have everything in this country to feed ourselves. Farmers should be empowered to cultivate crops for food security.
“Nigeria is fertile; we just need to be more strategic in our crop cultivation to give us sizable yields and good prices,” Legbara said.
