Vendors turn to alternative as soaring tomato prices spoil the broth for street food sellers

In many Nigerian cities, the air is typically thick with the smells of rice, fried plantains, and rich tomato stew, but a new, sour scent has begun to dominate the landscape, signaling a significant shift in the way food is being prepared and consumed.

n

This change is particularly evident at popular roadside canteens, where large aluminum pots are constantly bubbling over open gas flames, filled with a deep-red mixture that resembles Nigeria's famous jollof or white rice sauce, but is actually made with lower-quality ingredients.

n

Hidden beneath the counter, plastic crates are filled with leaking, bruised, and mold-covered tomatoes, known in local markets as Esa, Baza, or "rejects," which were previously discarded as waste or sold cheaply to the poorest households, but have now become a highly sought-after commodity.

n

For food vendors like Mrs. Sherifat Omo, using fresh ingredients is no longer a viable option, as the cost would be prohibitively expensive, with a standard wooden basket of fresh tomatoes now costing over N160,000, more than four times the original price of N35,000.

n

Mrs. Omo expressed her frustration with the situation, saying "If I buy the fresh ones, I will have to sell a plate of rice for N3,000 just to break even, but my customers are students and bus drivers who cannot afford such prices."

n

The severe economic crisis in Nigeria, fueled by currency devaluation and the removal of fuel subsidies, has led to a surge in food inflation, making it difficult for small-scale food vendors to purchase wholesome ingredients without facing financial ruin.

n

In order to survive, many food vendors have resorted to buying damaged or rotten tomatoes, which cost less than one-fifth of the price of fresh produce, and then attempting to mask the sour smell and taste with heavy amounts of spices and seasonings.

n

At tomato markets, the sorting sections have become intense battlegrounds, with restaurant owners and street food sellers competing to bid on crates of squashed, fermenting tomatoes, which are then taken home, sliced, and boiled down into a thick paste.

n

A recent viral video showed two women bringing rotten tomatoes filled with maggots to a market to blend, highlighting the growing trend of using contaminated ingredients in food preparation, which has raised concerns among public health experts.

n

According to Mr. Matthew Adedeji, a laboratory technician, "Wholesome-looking parts of a rotten tomato can still contain dangerous microscopic toxins, and regular consumption of foods contaminated with aflatoxins can cause severe food poisoning, chronic kidney damage, and liver cancer."

n

Despite the health warnings, economic survival has become the top priority for many food vendors, who feel trapped between the immediate death of their business or the slow poisoning of their customers, with customers who work manual jobs or earn minimum wage unable to afford the high prices of food made with fresh ingredients.

n

Mrs. Ruth Daudu, a food vendor, explained the difficult situation, saying "If I buy fresh tomatoes today, a single plate of food will cost N4,500, which is more than most of my customers can afford, so I have no choice but to buy the Esa tomatoes and use heavy spices to cover the bad taste."

n

She emphasized that vendors are not intentionally trying to harm their customers, but are instead forced to make difficult choices in order to survive, saying "It is this country that is turning honest people into monsters just to survive, and we are all just trying not to die of hunger."