Nigerian cooking runs on a small set of indispensable condiments — crayfish, egusi, ogbono, and pepper in their various forms. They are not optional. They are the flavour architecture of the cuisine. And as FoodPrices Nigeria's first verified price capture at Ipaja Market shows, every one of them is expensive — some at levels that represent a genuine crisis for households cooking daily on tight budgets.
Crayfish: ₦12,000 Per Paint, Off-Season and Climbing
Crayfish Medium at Ipaja Market is priced at ₦480,000 per 48-paint bag, ₦240,000 per 24-paint bag, ₦12,000 per paint bucket, and ₦3,000 per derica. These prices are consistent with the broader Lagos market reality. Premium Times reported that a paint bucket of crayfish which sold for ₦4,000 to ₦5,000 in early 2024 now costs between ₦12,500 and ₦14,000, with traders at Oyingbo Market attributing the price surge directly to crayfish being out of season. Premium Times The Ipaja price of ₦12,000 per paint sits at the lower end of that Lagos range — a relative advantage for Alimosho buyers, though ₦12,000 is still three times what the same paint cost two years ago.
A trader at Alimosho Market told Premium Times that export demand is compounding the off-season scarcity — bulk buyers are exporting crayfish at higher international prices, reducing domestic availability and pushing local prices further upward. Premium Times Consumers are deliberately buying smaller quantities — a derica instead of a paint — and making it stretch, because crayfish remains non-negotiable in Nigerian cooking regardless of price.
Ogbono: ₦350,000 Per 18-Paint Bag, ₦25,000 Per Paint
Ogbono at Ipaja Market trades at ₦350,000 per 18-paint bag and ₦25,000 per paint. The 9-paint half-bag is ₦175,000, and the derica is ₦6,000. Each paint contains approximately 2.75kg, placing the per-kg cost at around ₦9,090. Legit.ng reported that NBS data showed crayfish, ginger, chicken, and fish all recording price increases even as staple grains fell in early 2026 — confirming that the condiment category is moving against the broader grain deflation trend. Legit.ng
Melon White (Egusi): ₦300,000 Per 46-Paint Bag, ₦7,000 Per Paint
Egusi (Melon White) at Ipaja Market is priced at ₦300,000 per 46-paint bag, ₦150,000 per 23-paint bag, ₦7,000 per paint, and ₦1,500 per derica. At ₦7,000 per paint, egusi is more accessible than crayfish per purchase but accumulates significantly when bought regularly. A household using two paints of egusi weekly spends ₦56,000 per month on egusi alone.
The Pepper Market: Four Varieties, Four Price Points
Ipaja Market's pepper selection is the broadest tracked by FoodPrices Nigeria in a single Lagos market — four distinct varieties capturing the full range of Nigerian culinary pepper use.
Pepper (Atajosi) leads at ₦150,000 per 32-paint bag and ₦10,000 per paint, with a derica at ₦2,500. Black Pepper is ₦100,000 per 30-paint bag and ₦14,000 per paint — notable for the fact that its paint price exceeds Atajosi's despite a lower bag price, reflecting Black Pepper's higher density and concentration. Long Pepper (Ata gbigbe) is ₦90,000 per 30-paint bag and ₦6,000 per paint. Pepper (Rodo) is ₦50,000 per basket and ₦6,000 per paint. BusinessDay reported that a bag of fresh pepper across Lagos rose from around ₦30,000 in January to ₦46,000 ahead of Eid al-Fitr, attributing the surge to reduced farming activity during Ramadan.
The Household Mathematics of Cooking
The full condiment budget for one pot of Ogbono soup at Ipaja Market prices: one paint of ogbono (₦25,000), one paint of crayfish (₦12,000), one paint of Atajosi pepper (₦10,000), and a small rubber of tomatoes (₦2,000) — ₦49,000 in condiments before any protein, palm oil, leafy greens, or stock fish. For millions of Alimosho households cooking daily, this mathematics repeats every few days.
Live condiment prices: foodprices.ng/real-time-prices/?market=Ipaja+Market&category=Proteins