Cost of healthy diet in Nigeria hits N1,346 in September – NBS

The national average Cost of Healthy Diet (CoHD) was N1,346 per adult per day in September 2024, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said.

In its “Cost of a Healthy Diet September 2024” report published on Tuesday, the statistics office said this shows an increase of 7.3 per cent when compared to the amount recorded in the previous month (August 2024, was N1,255).

The bureau said in September 2024, the average CoHD was highest in the South West at N1,598 per adult per day, compared to N1,144 per adult per day in the North West.

The report said CoHD is the least expensive combination of locally available items that meet globally consistent food-based dietary guidelines.

It explained that it measures physical and economic access to healthy diets. It said this is a lower bound (or floor) of the cost per adult per day, excluding transportation and meal preparation costs.

“The National Average Cost of a Healthy Diet was N1,346 per adult per day in September 2024. At the State level, Osun, Ogun and Lagos States recorded the highest costs with N1,661, N1,650, and N1,639, respectively. Katsina, Jigawa and Kebbi accounted for the lowest costs, with N1,043, N1,087 and N1,118, respectively.

“At the Zonal level, the average CoHD was highest in the South West Zone at N1,598 per day, followed by the South-South Zone with N1,462 per day. The lowest average Cost of a Healthy diet was recorded in the North West Zone with N1,144 per day,” the NBS said.

Cost Share by Food Group

According to the bureau, animal-source foods were the most expensive food group recommendation to meet in September, accounting for 36 per cent of the total CoHD to provide 13 per cent of the total calories.

It said fruits and vegetables were the most expensive food groups in terms of price per calorie; they accounted for 11 per cent and 15 per cent, respectively, of total CoHD while providing only 7 per cent and 5 per cent of total calories in the Healthy Diet Basket.

It added that legumes, nuts and seeds were the least-expensive food group on average, at 7 per cent of the total cost.

The country’s food prices have been rising sharply in recent years, a situation that worsened in 2023 when President Bola Tinubu removed petrol subsidies and allowed the naira to float.

This shift has led to a steep increase in the cost of staple foods pushing many Nigerians further into poverty and heightening food insecurity.

The persistent surge in prices over the past year has led to the closure of several farms and businesses, with many agricultural producers scaling back their output due to insecurity and unpredictable weather conditions affecting rural areas.

Nigeria’s annual inflation rate rose in September after recording a two-month consecutive fall. The headline inflation rate was 32.70 per cent relative to the August 2024 headline inflation rate of 32.15 per cent, the NBS said in its latest inflation report.

According to the NBS, the food inflation rate in September 2024 was 37.77 per cent. It said on a year-on-year basis, it was 7.13 percentage points higher than the rate recorded in September 2023 (30.64 per cent).

On Tuesday, the statistics office said the CoHD had risen faster than general inflation and food inflation.

However, it noted the CoHD and the Food Consumer Price Index (CPI) are not directly comparable; the CoHD includes fewer items and is measured in Naira per day, while the food CPI is a weighted index.

The Cost of a Healthy Diet (CoHD) has been steadily rising over the past six (6) months since April 2024. In September 2024, the CoHD was 30 per cent higher than it was in April 2024 (N1,035).

“The main drivers of this increase in CoHD are legumes, nuts and seeds, starchy staples and animal source foods.”

On a month-month basis, the NBS said it increased by 7.3 per cent compared to the cost in August 2024 (N1,255). Legumes, nuts and seeds recorded the smallest increase in price by 3.8 per cent on a monthly basis.

In the past year, the bureau said the CoHD and the cost of all other goods and services increased at roughly the same rate, until July 2023, when CoHD increased at a faster rate than all goods and services (general CPI) and more than all foods for which retail prices are collected.

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The NBS said in September 2024 Ogun (Urban) topped the chart with the highest Cost of a Healthy (CoHD) at N1,691 per adult per day.

Conversely, it said Katsina (Rural) offered the most affordable option at N1,018 for CoHD. Interestingly, some of the least-cost food items remained consistent across both locations. These included Maize Grain yellow, Date Palm fruit (Debenu), and bitter leaf.

“However, price variations between these locations resulted in different costs per item. Also, some unique least-cost options emerged. For instance, Ogun (Urban) favoured garri white as the most affordable starchy staples, whereas Katsina (Rural) opted for maize grain yellow,” it said.