Cost of Cooking Jollof Rice Falls 11.5% as Chicken, Beef and Vegetable Oil Prices Drop

Nigerian households paid 11.5 per cent less to cook a pot of jollof rice in the third quarter of 2026. The National Average Jollof Index dropped from N29,578 in June to N26,178 in September, a reduction of N3,400, according to SBM Intelligence.

The decline is the steepest quarterly fall since SBM Intelligence began tracking jollof rice costs in July 2016. Cheaper chicken, beef and vegetable oil drove the relief, even as flooding pushed prices higher in Port Harcourt.

Lagos Records Sharpest Savings

The report examined food prices across 13 markets in Nigeria's six geopolitical zones. Falling chicken and beef prices accounted for a significant part of the reduction, reversing sharp increases recorded earlier in the year. Vegetable oil also became cheaper in nine of the 13 markets surveyed. In Lagos, the price of 90 centilitres of vegetable oil dropped from N5,000 to N3,000.

The sharpest decline came between June and July, when the index fell by N2,312. Prices were relatively stable in August before declining by another N984 in September. Food inflation fell from 20.31 per cent in July to 19.57 per cent in August, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

The relief was uneven. At Trade Fair and Balogun markets in Lagos, the cost of preparing jollof rice crashed from N34,700 in June to N22,350 in September, a 35.6 per cent reduction. In Onitsha, the cost declined by 5.3 per cent to N21,350. Awka recorded a 3.2 per cent reduction to the same amount.

Port Harcourt Prices Rise on Flooding

Port Harcourt was the only surveyed location where prices increased, rising by 2.6 per cent from N31,200 to N32,000. SBM linked the increase to flooding in Port Harcourt and Obio/Akpor, which disrupted local market conditions. Calabar remained among the country's most expensive locations, with jollof rice costing N34,600 in Calabar Municipal and N34,500 in Bayside Mbakpa.

The report also cautioned that a data-recording error involving spice prices exaggerated the reported decline in two Ibadan markets.

Households Adjust Food Choices

There was evidence that falling prices influenced household food choices. A respondent in Kumbotso, Kano State, who previously stopped buying chicken because of high prices, resumed purchasing one chicken weekly after the price per kilogram declined from N7,000 to N4,500. Another respondent in Gwale reported being able to cook stew daily again after pepper prices fell.

Still, Nigerian families are paying substantially more for food than in previous years. The national jollof index remained 5.8 per cent higher than in September 2025 and about 540 per cent above its July 2016 level. Rice prices contributed little to the quarterly decline, underscoring the growing influence of protein, cooking oil and other ingredients on household food expenditure.

The figures point to modest relief for household budgets. Sustained reductions will be needed before Nigerians feel lasting relief.