HADEJIA (GEGAWA) – Prices of perishable produce in Hadejia, Jigawa have skyrocketed due to acute scarcity of the commodities, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.
NAN reports that prices of fresh tomato and other perishable items have shot up by over 100 per cent in the past 10 days.
A measure of tomato is now sold for N600 and pepper N400 as against their old prices of N250 and N200, respectively.
Onions have also indicated similar hike in prices as a measure sells for N250, as against its previous price of N100.
Some sellers attributed the increase in the prices of perishable items to acute scarcity of the produce caused by the late arrival of rainfall.
Malam Yakubu Danfulani, a tomato seller at Janbulo market, Hadejia, said that the prices were up due to low supply from the farms.
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Danfulani explained that the current weather was not favourable to the produce, adding that this resulted to scarcity.
“There is drastic fall in the supply of the commodities, as the produce often affected by both rainfall and hot weather,” he said.
A tomato grower, Kassimu Ayuba, said that the scarcity was caused by the absence of modern storage facilities.
He said that farmers could not keep the commodities for a longer period due to lack of preservation techniques.
“Every rainy season farmers of perishable produce are exposed to losses due to lack of preservation silos.
“During hot season, we sell the produce at lower prices to avoid losses and it make perishable farming less attractive,” he said.
Ayuba called for introduction of modern preservation technologies to check wastage of the produce.
Alhaji Musa Muhammad, a resident, said that he had dropped fresh tomatoes from his shopping menu due to exorbitant prices.
Muhammad said that he preferred dried tomatoes due to its lower prices and availability. (NAN)
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