The National Bureau of Statistics says the average price of a 50kg bag of local rice (short grain) increased by 20.5 per cent in March 2026 to N112,000, compared to N92,946 recorded in February 2026.
The bureau disclosed this in its Selected Food Price Watch Report for March 2026 released on Tuesday.
The report, however, noted that recent market findings showed that the average price of a 50kg bag of local short-grain rice stood at about N60,000 despite recent price increases.
It also stated that the average price of a 50kg bag of foreign rice rose by 3.06 per cent to N133,975 in March from N110,589 recorded in February.
According to the bureau, several other food items also recorded price increases during the review period.
“The Selected Food Price Watch report for March 2026 shows that the average price of Eggs (a crate of 30 pieces) on a month-on-month basis, increased by 2.0 percent compared to February 2026. Similarly, the average price of Beans brown (1kg) was N1,325.85 in March 2026. This item increased by 1.41 percent from N1,307.44 in February 2026.
“In the same period, the average price of Garri white sold loose (1kg) grew by 1.38 percent to N801.54 in March 2026 compared with February 2026. Likewise, the average price of onion bulb (1kg) on a month-on-month increase 1.59 percent to N1,153.14 in March 2026 from the price in February 2026.
“The average price of ginger fresh (1kg) stood at N5,541.25, which represents an increase of 0.61 percent month-on-month.”
The bureau further stated that Taraba State recorded the highest average price for a crate of eggs at N6,999 in March, while Niger State recorded the lowest average price at N5,610.04.
“For Beans brown (1kg), Oyo State recorded the highest average price at N1,937.20, whereas Taraba State had the lowest at N745. In the case of Garri white (1kg), Abia State recorded the highest average price at N1,075.45, while Plateau State recorded the lowest at N513.78.
“Similarly, the average price of onion bulb (1kg) was highest in Abia State at N2,115.67, while Kwara State recorded the lowest average price at N829.9,” the NBS added.
