New Prices Emerge as Tomato Production Breaks 12-Year Records in Nigeria
- In 2025, Nigeria experienced stable tomato prices after years of shortages and price spikes
- Strategic efforts improved local production and reduced post-harvest losses in the tomato sector
- Half of Nigeria's tomato harvest is still lost annually due to infrastructure challenges and inadequate processing
In 2025, Nigerians experienced a rare phenomenon: steady tomato prices throughout the year.
After 12 years of recurring shortages and sharp price spikes, the long cycle of tomato scarcity finally broke.
Source: TikTok
Tomatoes: What changed in 2025?
This shift brought welcome relief to consumers and food producers alike, who have long struggled with sharp price swings and seasonal disruptions.
For over a decade, tomatoes were a flashpoint of food price instability in Nigeria.
Each year, the West African nation saw prices surge, especially during lean seasons, pushing many households to pay more for a staple ingredient.
Manufacturers of tomato paste often struggled to find enough raw materials, forcing some factories to pause operations or import tomato products to fill the gap.
Experts say the improved situation is not an accident but the result of years of coordinated efforts by both the government and private sector players.
Strategic moves to boost local production, reduce post-harvest losses, and address recurring pest problems finally began to pay off.
One such pest, Tuta Absoluta, has regularly devastated tomato farms across the country, contributing to scarcity and high prices in previous years.
Collaboration across the agricultural value chain played a key role. Farmers gained better access to improved seeds and training, and intervention programmes helped expand output in key tomato-growing regions.
These efforts not only boosted supply but also encouraged more people to invest in tomato farming because they saw it as a viable business rather than a high-risk crop.
Steadier prices for households, businesses
Market data shows that the average price rise for a large basket of fresh tomatoes in Lagos, from early to late 2025, was modest compared with previous years, suggesting a much more stable market.
In contrast to past years when prices would often more than double during scarcity, the increase last year was relatively contained.
According to a report by BusinessDay, the impact of this stability rippled through everyday life.
Households could plan meals without worrying about sudden price hikes, and food processors could operate with more predictable input costs.
For many manufacturers of tomato paste and sauce, reliable access to fresh tomatoes eased production planning and helped avoid costly imports.
Challenges still ahead
Despite the positive turn, Nigeria’s tomato sector is not yet fully self-sufficient.
About half of the tomato produce in the country is lost each year to poor storage, inadequate transportation, and a lack of proper processing facilities. These weaknesses have historically undermined the sector’s potential, even in years of good harvests.
Stakeholders are optimistic that price stability will continue into 2026, but maintaining progress will require sustained investment in storage infrastructure, better market linkages, and continued support for farmers.
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If these gaps are addressed, Nigeria could move closer to fully meeting domestic tomato demand and reducing reliance on imports of processed tomato products.
In 2025, Nigeria took an important step toward ending its long battle with tomato scarcity.
The challenge now is to build on that success so that steady supply and affordable prices become the norm rather than the exception.
Food prices drop sharply as inflation falls
Legit.ng earlier reported that the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has reported a mild reduction in the cost of several major food items, including beans, garri, maize, tomatoes, and others, during September 2025.
The update was contained in the agency’s Selected Food Prices Watch report released in Abuja on Tuesday.
According to the NBS, the average price of 1kg of brown beans dropped by 33.70% compared to the same month in 2024, sliding from N2,738.59 to N1,815.76 in September 2025. Month-on-month data also showed a 1.74 per cent fall from the N1,847.82 recorded in August.
Proofreading by Kola Muhammed, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
