Some housewives in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, have stopped using tomatoes for stew and other sauces over the rise in cost.
Politics Nigeria had reported that a moderate basket of tomatoes now sells for between N90,000 and N100,000, compared to the previous price of N20,000.
Similarly, a small basket of pepper, known as “Rodo,” which used to sell for between N12,000 and N15,000, now sells for between N40,000 and N45,000, depending on its freshness.
The residents, who made this known in interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said they resorted to using garden eggplants and carrots for stew.
They said garden egg, called ganyen gauta in Hausa, igba in Yoruba and anyara in Igbo, could blend very well with rice in the same manner as tomatoes.
Others said they were exploring pumpkin, pawpaw or traditional soups like white soup and palm fruit soup, popularly called Banga, in place of tomato stew.
Mrs Jumai Amodu, a mother of five, said a week without rice with tomato stew was unfulfilling for her and the family.
She said rice with stew was a regular on their menu, adding that “there is an unexplainable satisfaction that comes with taking cooked rice and stew.”
The mother of five, however, said with the scarcity and high cost of tomatoes, her family was exploring garden egg stew.
Amodu said, “Since tomatoes became very expensive, we decided to use garden egg for stew, and it is as sweet as tomato stew.
“The only major difference between garden egg and tomato stew is the colour. We also use pumpkin stew with rice sometimes, and although it has its unique taste, it blends well with rice.”
Mrs Chinedu, an entrepreneur, on her part, said he enjoyed taking rice with pepper soup or white soup.
“The prices of all foodstuff have gone up, but that of tomatoes is outrageous probably because it is tomatoes off-season.
“Besides being expensive, it is very scarce, and as a result, we decided to explore other recipes,” she said.
Umar Adamu, a tomatoes retailer in Nyanya market, said he had stopped retailing tomatoes for some days due to low patronage.
He said customers were not “patronising him because of the high cost.”
Mrs Rukkaya Umar, Chief Executive Officer of Abraks Farm Produce Nigeria Limited, said the primary reason for the scarcity of tomatoes was the high fertiliser cost.
According to her, many tomato farmers do not grow it because they cannot afford fertiliser, adding that fertiliser was critical to its growth.
