By Abubakar Ahmed
- https://thenationonlineng.net/katsina-rakes-in-n393m-from-farming/?amp=1
Despite the commencement of the harvest of food items in many parts of the katsina state , prices of the commodities keep rising in charanci market.
Investigation showed that harvest of products like maize, millet, beans and rice has commenced in many parts of the katsina market areas but this has failed to bring down the prices of the items as was usually the case in the past.
Observers believed that the ongoing harvest in many parts of the regions was expected to bring down the prices of the commodities but the opposite is the case.
On Sunday I visited the charanci market ,
the commencement of the harvest a few weeks ago, farmers flooded the market with new grains, especially maize.
A grain merchant at the charanci market, Alhaji Kabir Auta gaiwa, told me that at the commencement of the harvest, there was a drop in commodity prices but was short-lived because of a mad rush for the grain in the market, hence the rise in the prices.
Similarly, one of the merchants, who pleaded anonymity, told me that most of them were fronting for multi-national agro companies, adding that there was a “silent ongoing competition between these agro companies and as such a huge demand for the commodity has been created.”
He said, “It is unfortunate that a huge demand has been created by these multi-national companies without any consideration to the plight of the common man. To be candid, we are all fronting for these companies, but it isn’t what we wanted to see.
“Farmers have done what they were supposed to do, but this is Nigeria, these companies are taking these harvested produce to either store them or export them,” he said.
Due to this development, it was gathered that prices of the commodities in the market had gone up as 100kg bag of new maize was sold for between N20, 000 and N22, 000 as against between N19,000 and N20,000 last year.
Similarly, a 100kg bag of beans was sold for N43, 000 yesterday as against N34, 000 same time last year and a 100kg bag of rice was sold for N57, 000 as against N48,000 last year.
we have not been experiencing the relief we hitherto enjoyed during the harvest period.”