The average price of preparing a pot of Jollof rice in Nigeria increased by 153% to N27,527.85 between March 2023 and June 2025. This is according to the latest SBM Jollof Index report, published by SBM Intelligence.
This sharp rise, the report reveals is driven by currency depreciation, insecurity, and supply chain disruptions, which have made the globally acclaimed ‘Naija Jollof’ a luxury for many. For context, a pot of Jollof now takes up about 40 % of Nigeria’s minimum monthly wage of N70,000.
Skyrocketing Food Prices Nationwide
The price of major Jollof rice ingredients like rice, tomatoes, peppers, onions, and proteins like chicken or turkey has skyrocketed nationwide, making the price of making a pot of Jollof highly prohibitive.
The report reveals that the cost of preparing a pot of jollof rice skyrocketed to ₦41,050 by June 2025 in Bauchi, making it the highest in the nation, while in Onitsha, the price hovers around N22,000.
Insecurity in food-producing regions, particularly in the North, has also affected agricultural output with Bandit attacks, farmer-herder conflicts, and droughts decimating onion and pepper production, while flooding has destroyed rice farmlands.
The weakened naira and scarce foreign exchange have made imported ingredients, like rice, prohibitively expensive while the removal of fuel subsidies has spiked transportation and energy costs, pushing up prices for everything from groundnut oil to poultry.
What Can be Done
The rising cost of jollof rice has forced families to adapt by downsizing portions, substituting cheaper ingredients like eggs for meat, or skipping the dish altogether. In Lagos, alternative food items like yam tubers are now sold in smaller slices, and fish is retailed in quarter-kilo portions to remain affordable.
The SBM Jollof Index report urges policymakers to bolster security in food-producing regions, improve road networks to ease logistics, and support small-scale farmers. Some analysts also argue for relaxing import restrictions to boost food supply.
