For once, the news on one of Nigeria's most temperamental kitchen staples is reassuring. The president of the National Onion Producers, Processors and Marketers Association of Nigeria, Aliyu Maitasamu, has said onion production for the 2025/2026 season remains strong and prices should stay largely stable, dismissing fears of scarcity, according to Vanguard.
Onion Banks Keep Supply Flowing
Maitasamu said there is enough onion across the north, with stored stocks held in what farmers call onion banks released steadily from March through July, and that insecurity has not significantly disrupted farming since agriculture remains the main livelihood in producing communities, the Vanguard report noted. He cautioned that prices could see slight increases driven mainly by logistics rather than shortage.
The Real Cost Driver
Industry voices point to transport and inputs, not insecurity, as the main pressure on prices. The national secretary of the tomato growers' association, Sani Yadakwari, said reports linking scarcity primarily to insecurity are exaggerated, identifying the high cost of transportation and farm inputs as the genuine driver, according to Vanguard.
A Fragile Chain Underneath
The stability sits on shaky foundations. Nigeria loses an estimated $420 million each year to onion shortages caused by inadequate storage, preservation and cold-chain systems, according to Prime Progress. The vulnerability was laid bare in the 2024 and 2025 crisis, when floods across northern states and a wave of substandard seeds pushed onion prices up more than 100 per cent in some markets, as BusinessDay reported.
FoodPrices Nigeria tracks verified vegetable prices across Lagos markets, where onion remains one of the staples most prone to sudden swings between glut and scarcity.