The total amount spent by Nigerians on food in the ten years to 2019 came to over N22.777 trillion, a 75% leap over the figure posted a decade ago (2009/2010), when food consumption spending was N13.016 trillion, the statistics office has said.
According to the Consumption Expenditure Pattern in Nigeria 2019, released by the National Bureau of statistics (NBS) Friday, food gulped 56.65% of the total household expenditure of more than N40.207 trillion in the period under review while the rest 43.35% or N17.430 trillion went to transport, health, education, rent, fuel and other non-food essentials.
In the decade before, total food consumption expenditure had constituted 60.2% of the overall household expenditure, meaning that the figure witnessed a slump in 2019.
The NBS Consumption Expenditure Pattern report is compiled every decade with the latest version based on the Nigerian Living Standard Survey 2018/2019.
It aims to depict household consumption expenditure types by food and non-food items at the national, zonal level, and state level, and also the urban/rural divide.
In 2019, food consumed outside the home, followed by transportation and starchy roots, tubers and plantains, accounted for the biggest share of household spending, translating to a combined 24.16% of total household expenditure.
Foods consumed outside the home, starchy roots, tubers and plantains, rice, vegetables, fish and sea food, grains and flours were the top food items Nigerian households spent money on in 2019.
Altogether, they constituted 59.19% of food expenditure and 24.8% of the entire household expenditure.
Transport, health, education, services, rent, fuel and light jointly accounted for 79.40% of non-food expenditure.
Total household expenditure in urban areas in 2019 was N19,113,569,558,086 (N8,412,656,254,286 in 2009/10), compared to N21,093,818,901,281 (N9,364,312,669,993 in 2009/2010) in the rural areas.
The report puts the total expenditure on food in urban areas at N9,847,690,798,340 in 2019 (N3,654,003,234,722 in 2009/2010) and that of rural areas at N12,929,558,844,031 (N9,364,312,669,993 in 2009/2010).
“For a developing country like Nigeria, the consumption pattern is skewed towards food i.e. food is higher than the non-food items.
“In most developed countries, it is the opposite, where the consumption pattern is skewed towards non-food items.
“The more developed a society becomes, the less it spends on food and the more it spends on non-food items. Lagos is a clear indication of a state with an emerging economy. Lagos state’s expenditure on non-food items was more than its expenditure on food,” the document says.
Lagos, Oyo and Delta states were responsible for the biggest household spending in Nigeria in 2019, accounting for N5.068 trillion (12.60%), N2.342 trillion (5.83%) and N2.162 trillion (5.38%) respectively of the total household expenditure.
On the other hand, Nasarawa, Ebonyi and Taraba states were responsible for the least household spending, accounting for N383.581 billion (0.95%), N310.189 billion (0.77%) and N297.380 billion (0.74%) respectively of the total household expenditure.
According to the Consumption Expenditure Pattern in Nigeria 2019, released by the National Bureau of statistics (NBS) Friday, food gulped 56.65% of the total household expenditure of more than N40.207 trillion in the period under review while the rest 43.35% or N17.430 trillion went to transport, health, education, rent, fuel and other non-food essentials.
In the decade before, total food consumption expenditure had constituted 60.2% of the overall household expenditure, meaning that the figure witnessed a slump in 2019.
The NBS Consumption Expenditure Pattern report is compiled every decade with the latest version based on the Nigerian Living Standard Survey 2018/2019.
It aims to depict household consumption expenditure types by food and non-food items at the national, zonal level, and state level, and also the urban/rural divide.
In 2019, food consumed outside the home, followed by transportation and starchy roots, tubers and plantains, accounted for the biggest share of household spending, translating to a combined 24.16% of total household expenditure.
Foods consumed outside the home, starchy roots, tubers and plantains, rice, vegetables, fish and sea food, grains and flours were the top food items Nigerian households spent money on in 2019.
Altogether, they constituted 59.19% of food expenditure and 24.8% of the entire household expenditure.
Transport, health, education, services, rent, fuel and light jointly accounted for 79.40% of non-food expenditure.
Total household expenditure in urban areas in 2019 was N19,113,569,558,086 (N8,412,656,254,286 in 2009/10), compared to N21,093,818,901,281 (N9,364,312,669,993 in 2009/2010) in the rural areas.
The report puts the total expenditure on food in urban areas at N9,847,690,798,340 in 2019 (N3,654,003,234,722 in 2009/2010) and that of rural areas at N12,929,558,844,031 (N9,364,312,669,993 in 2009/2010).
“For a developing country like Nigeria, the consumption pattern is skewed towards food i.e. food is higher than the non-food items.
“In most developed countries, it is the opposite, where the consumption pattern is skewed towards non-food items.
“The more developed a society becomes, the less it spends on food and the more it spends on non-food items. Lagos is a clear indication of a state with an emerging economy. Lagos state’s expenditure on non-food items was more than its expenditure on food,” the document says.
Lagos, Oyo and Delta states were responsible for the biggest household spending in Nigeria in 2019, accounting for N5.068 trillion (12.60%), N2.342 trillion (5.83%) and N2.162 trillion (5.38%) respectively of the total household expenditure.
On the other hand, Nasarawa, Ebonyi and Taraba states were responsible for the least household spending, accounting for N383.581 billion (0.95%), N310.189 billion (0.77%) and N297.380 billion (0.74%) respectively of the total household expenditure.