NBS Data Shows Amount Nigerians Spend on Healthy Diet in a Day
- The Cost of a Healthy Diet in Nigeria rose by 27.3% year-on-year to N1,611 per adult per day in July 2025
- Ekiti, Bayelsa and Imo recorded the highest diet costs, while Gombe, Katsina and Yobe had the lowest
- Animal-source foods remained the most expensive food group, accounting for 32% of the total cost
Oluwatobi Odeyinka is a business editor at Legit.ng, covering energy, the money market, tech and macroeconomic trends in Nigeria.
The average Cost of a Healthy Diet (CoHD) in Nigeria increased to N1,611 per adult per day in July 2025, according to a recent report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The figure represents a 27.3% rise from N1,265 recorded in July 2024, Vanguard reported.
Source: Getty Images
According to the CoHD report released by the NBS, the national average reflects the minimum amount required for an adult to meet dietary recommendations using locally available foods.
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The report showed that Ekiti, Bayelsa and Imo posted the highest daily costs at N2,663, N2,352 and N2,235, respectively. On the other hand, Gombe had the lowest cost at N985, followed by Katsina at N1,147 and Yobe at N1,180.
A zonal breakdown also revealed wide variations across the country. The South-West recorded the highest average at N2,030 per adult per day, with the South-East next at N1,862. The North-East posted the lowest zonal average at N1,341.
On food group contributions, the agency explained that animal-source foods remained the most expensive component, accounting for 32% of the total cost while contributing 13% of daily calories. Fruits and vegetables were also highlighted as costly on a per-calorie basis, taking up 16% and 14% of the total cost, respectively, but delivering relatively fewer calories.
Legumes, nuts and seeds were identified as the least expensive group, responsible for just 7% of the overall cost.
The NBS also provided a month-by-month trend for 2025. The CoHD rose from N1,328 in January to N1,346 in February, then climbed to N1,498 in March and N1,598 in April. However, the trend reversed in May with a 7.1% decline to N1,484 due to lower prices of oils and fats, starchy staples, vegetables and fruits. This drop was partly offset by increases in legumes, nuts and seeds, as well as animal-source foods.
The cost resumed an upward movement in June, rising to N1,514, and further increased by 6.4% in July to reach N1,611.
The agency said the July increase was driven by higher prices of legumes, nuts and seeds, animal-source foods, vegetables and fruits, while starchy staples recorded a slight decline.
Source: Getty Images
Food more affordable in 10 states
Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that food has become cheaper in 10 states, according to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) of October, released by the NBS last month.
The 10 states with the lowest food inflation rate (Year-on-Year) are:
- Bauchi – 2.81%
- Niger – 8.38%
- Anambra – 8.41%
- Benue – 8.60%
- Akwa Ibom – 9.00%
- Abuja – 11.00%
- Plateau – 11.20%
- Jigawa – 12.10%
- Yobe – 12.80%
- Imo – 12.40%
According to the NBS, headline inflation dropped to 18%, marking a 2.1 percentage point decline from 20.12% recorded in August 2025.
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Source: Legit.ng
