The Chairman of BUA Group, Abdul Samad Rabiu, has pledged to further lower the prices of rice and other food items.
He said President Bola Tinubu’s waiver on imported food items has helped to crash food prices in the country.
President Tinubu had in July 2024, announced suspension of customs duties on imported food items to stem food inflation.
Speaking after meeting with President Tinubu, Rabiu said the policy helped BUA Foods to import lot of wheat, maize and rice.
“At the time food prices were really very high last year. The price of rice was about N100,000 or thereabout per 50 kilo bag.
“The flour was about N80,000 per bag and maize was about N60,000 per 50 kilo bag, and pasta above N20,000 per Carton.
“So what we did was, we keyed into that policy and BUA was able to import quite a lot of wheat, maize and rice.
“And the moment the shipment started coming, we started processing, we crushed the prices of some of these commodities.
“The price of rice is about N60,000 from what it was last year at N110,000. Flour is today N55,000 Naira per 50 kilo bag. Maize is about N30,000.
He said that President Tinubu’s foresight and vision (one-off duty waiver), has assisted in bringing down the prices of the commodities.
“A lot of companies in Nigeria usually buy a lot of rice paddy used to process rice.
“The moment the harvest season starts, a lot of people will now buy a lot of these paddy and hold it for three to four months.
“The moment the season finishes, then the price will double. So, a lot of people don’t know that, but that has always been the problem.
“That does not really in any way affect the farmer, because the farmer is getting his 400 to N500,000 per ton of paddy.
“But the people that are buying and holding for three to four months, once the season finishes, it goes back up to N800,000.
BUA Chairman said that the intervention destroyed business for the hoarders.
“The moment we imported, we were selling, and those hoarders had a lot of paddy, they could not sell, and the price now came down, and it is still down.
“So a lot of those holders are actually crying now and losing money.”
“Rabiu assured that the Rice Millers Association is now united against companies hoarding and will not allow any of its members to do so.
He expressed the hope that the price of rice will not go higher than what it is at the moment.
“It is quite interesting that when prices were quite high, N100,000 everybody was shouting, now that prices are down or are coming down, it is like, nobody is coming out to say, look, food prices are coming down.
“I’m happy to say that food prices are coming down, and they will continue to come down.
“That is what BUA foods is doing to support the efforts of the government in ensuring that food prices are down,” Rabiu said.
