Pricepally Food News #2

Welcome to this week’s edition of our bi-weekly food news for the latest on prices, availability and happenings in the food market both locally and globally.

Local News

Off-Season.

Yams are expensive and have increased by up to ₦500, but new yams should be in a couple of months and prices will return to normal.

In-Season.

Vegetables like Efo-shoko, Tete, Gbure etc., are in season and are cheap.

The Issues over the open grazing ban by governors of the south and may likely cause an increase in the price of beef.

Nigeria Takes Advantage of Biotechnology.

A few African countries have begun to take advantage of agricultural biotechnology to overcome crop production challenges. The last country reported to have done so is Nigeria where more than 2000 farmers are ready to grow genetically modified cowpea this year, according to the digital publication, Cornell Alliance for Science, dated May 5, 2021.

Gombe Trains Famers on Weather Forecast, Cropping guide and Animal Husbandry.

The seminar was organised by the state ministry of agriculture and animal husbandry. The Gombe State Government has scheduled a conference to train farmers in the state on the weather forecast, cropping guide and modern farming techniques ahead of the 2021 wet season. The seminar conducted by the state ministry of agriculture and animal husbandry was aimed at equipping them in the face of climate change and global warming.

Unity Bank to Extend Funding to 120,000 Maize Farmers.

Abuja had the slowest rise in prices on a month-on-month food basis. Prices of food items rose the most in Kebbi, Ekiti and Kano in April, the consumer price index (CPI) report released on Monday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has shown. The report revealed that on a month-on-month basis, food price inflation was highest in Kebbi at 2.46%, Ekiti at 2.42%, and Kano at 2.17%.

International News

The local Ban on Ugandan Maize has been lifted.

There is a sigh of relief among traders after Kenya lifted the ban on the importation of maize. More than 100 trucks carrying about 1,200 tonnes of maize from Busia, Uganda, spontaneously crossed into Kenya on Monday. The lift marks the resumption of the multibillion trade between Uganda and Kenya, a major trading partner on the East African bloc. The Agriculture and Food Authority (AFA) of Kenya on March 5 banned the importation of maize from Uganda and Tanzania over safety standards, saying the cereal had aflatoxins and posed a health risk to consumers.

The Horn of Africa Faces Fresh Food Shortage.

The Horn of Africa region is staring at food shortages after the delayed start of the long rains in some countries and below-average rainfall in others. The UN and the government of Somalia have jointly declared drought in the country after officials determined that 80 per cent of Somalia had received little rainfall. Usually, much of the Horn considers March to May as a planting season. However, projections by the Famine Early Warnings Systems Network and the International Federation of Red Cross (IFRC) and the Red Crescent Societies indicate that the situation is likely to get worse as we get into May down to September if the weather situation does not change.

And that’s all for this week’s edition.

Check out our previous news here

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