Yam consumers have been reported to be faced with expensive prices of yam as sellers increase their price due to the shortage of commodity and inflation.
Analysts and NBS report attribute the upsurge in the prices of food to inflation and has exerted pressure on the cost of living. A tuber of yam in Ikeja, Lagos is sold for either N1,500 or N2,000 and N700 or N1,000 on the Mainland.
However, a foodstuff seller at Shomolu market, Lagos, Mrs. Abia Onyeka, while speaking with reporters, said the increase in price was because the new yam which was supposed to have been out since March was not yet in the market and the prices of the few old yams in the market had to be increased because of the demand.
Hidden Prospects of Yam Production in Nigeria
He said once the new yam is in the market, the price will drop from N900 to N600. He is of the belief that the principle of demand and supply is currently in effect. He stressed that the supply cannot meet with the high demand since the new yam is out already.
However, this theory turns out to fail to completely hold water. After checking to see a connection between the unavailability of the new yam and the inflation, the Nation newspaper recorded a different finding; while using Enugu as a reference point.
It was discovered that the high price of yam at Enugu was due to the cost of transporting yams from the North and not scarcity.
