Cost of healthy diet in Nigeria stood at N1,041 in May – NBS

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said on Friday the average cost of a healthy diet per day in the country stood at N1,041 in May.

The NBS revealed this in its Cost of Healthy Diet (CoHD) report for last month released in Abuja.

The bureau said the CoHD in May increased by one percent compared to the N1,035 recorded in April.

According to NBS, CoHD was the least expensive combination of locally available items that met globally consistent food-based dietary guidelines.

The agency added that the parameter was used as a measure of physical and economic access to healthy diets.

The report read: “This is a lower bound (or floor) of the cost per adult per day excluding the cost of transportation and meal preparation.

“To compute the CoHD indicator, data on Retail Food Prices, Food Composition Data, and Healthy Diet Standards are required.

“In May, the average CoHD was highest in the South-West at N1,189 per adult per day, followed by the South-East at N1,190 per day.

READ ALSO: Nigeria expenditure on fuel importation in Q1|24 increases to N4.39tr – NBS

“The lowest average CoHD was recorded in the North-West at N919 per adult per day.

“At the state level, Ebonyi, Abia and Anambra recorded the highest CoHD at N1,225, N1,215, and N1,205, respectively.

“Conversely, Kano recorded the lowest CoHD at N898, followed by Jigawa at N899, and Yobe and Katsina at N906.

“The CoHD in May 2024 is 32 percent higher than what was recorded in December 2023 at N786 and one percent higher than CoHD in April 2024, which was N1,035.

“The food groups that have driven the increases in CoHD the most are starchy staples, legumes, nuts and seeds, and animal source foods.

“On the other hand, vegetables and fruits recorded the lowest increase in price on a month-on-month basis.”

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now