Prices of staple food items have increased in Enugu two weeks to the celebration of this year’s Easter.
A survey conducted by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) weekend showed that items like garri, yams, onions and tomatoes were on the high side.
Most of the traders attributed the development to last year’s flood disaster.
Geraldine Obodeke, a garri trader at Ogbete Main Market, said that a medium size basin of white garri sells for N2, 700 as against N1, 800, while the yellow brand is sold for N3, 200 as against N2, 500 sold last month.
A measure of small custard bucket called ‘Painter’ of the white garri is sold for N350 instead of N280 and the yellow garri at N400 as against N320 that it was sold previously.
According to her, garri is usually costly during this period because of the hardness of the soil and clearing of the land for planting.
“So, because it is difficult to extract the cassava with which garri is produced, the people who dig it out of the soil charge exorbitant fees for labour,’’ she said.
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