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Onions, one of the kitchen necessities affected by the drastic price hike. 

Lagos— Housewives in Lagos State, on Wednesday, called for improvement in irrigation farming to reduce the price of food items in the country.

The housewives, who spoke with newsmen, said that the high cost of food items had inflicted untold hardship on most households.

Josephine, a journalist and a mother of three, told NAN that high cost of food should not be a subject of concern given the country’s good weather.

She said that countries with adverse weather conditions had since embraced mechanised farming to ensure that productivity remained consistent all year round.

“It’s so hard for the common man to feed these days, and it’s hard to comprehend that with the good weather this country is blessed with, we experience this nearly every year.

“What happens to irrigation farming— mechanised farming— so that we can improve on productivity all year round? Look at onions, it’s so expensive, we pay double for the price of one.

“Then the issue of herdsmen and insecurity are issues farmers have constantly complained about that we hear and read on the pages of newspapers,” she added.

In the same vein, Mrs Bolanle Tonaade, a fashion designer, told NAN that the hike in the prices of food items should not be attributed to the activities of traders.

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“Market women will only fix their prices based on how much the farmers are selling, and farmers also will fix prices based on how much it cost to cultivate the farm produce.

“So these increases are beyond the regular market men and women.

“I have had to cut down on the numbers of onions that I use. I have made adjustments to guard against friction at home.

“Because one has to be very careful so we don’t put unnecessary pressure on ourselves, farmers and government should work hand-in-hand and see how we can preserve farm produce to last all year round,” she said.

Mrs Adebunmi Lawrence, a pensioner, lamented that it was difficult to plan because of the unpredictable nature of the market.

“I don’t know what can be done, but things cannot continue like this,” she said.

Also, Mrs Esther Adebamowo, the Iyaloja of Olugbede Market, Egbeda in Egbe-Idimu Local Council Development Area, said market women were not happy with the situation.

“If anyone thinks we are smiling to the banks they should have a rethink, as a businessman or woman getting returns is important.

“As we know, your cost price determines your selling price. So these are beyond us; what we should focus on is how to assist our farmers and make their jobs easy.

“We all know that quick returns make business boom. If things are expensive consumers will not buy as much as they should and we can’t consume all by ourselves.

“Making the roads more accessible is a good way to start. Ensuring security for farmers and giving us fertilisers to increase productivity are other factors to look into, ” she said.

Vanguard News Nigeria