Rice prices in Nigeria fell across all major categories in September 2026, with data showing month-on-month declines for Nigerian manufactured, imported long-grain and imported short-grain rice across multiple bag sizes and retail measures.
Imported Long-Grain Rice Records Steepest Drop
Imported long-grain rice recorded the sharpest fall. Its 50kg average price dropped from N56,093.75 in August to N54,328.13 in September, a reduction of N1,765.62 or 3.1%. The average price of 25kg imported long-grain rice fell by N1,703.13 in September, dropping from N28,203.13 in August to N26,500, a decline of 6%.
Nigerian manufactured rice in the 50kg size fell from N52,250 to N51,571.43, while imported short-grain rice declined from N52,300 to N50,950.
Declines Across 25kg Bags and Smaller Retail Measures
The 25kg segment followed the same direction. Nigerian manufactured rice fell from N26,375 to N25,803.57, a drop of about 2.2%, while imported short-grain rice declined from N26,237.50 to N25,500, a fall of roughly 2.8%.
The downward movement extended to smaller retail measures. For the 4.15kg paint measure, Nigerian-manufactured rice fell from N4,445.83 in August to N4,356.25 in September. Imported long-grain rice declined from N4,681.25 to N4,509.38, and imported short-grain rice dropped from N4,347.22 to N4,243.06.
For the 0.75kg derica measure, Nigerian-manufactured rice came down from N864.58 to N833.33. Imported long-grain rice fell from N953.13 to N923.44, while imported short-grain rice declined from N840.28 to N826.39.
Broad-Based Softening in Rice Prices
Across the tracked varieties and sizes, imported long-grain rice recorded the largest percentage declines, while Nigerian manufactured rice posted smaller but consistent reductions. Imported short-grain rice fell by about 2.6% for the 50kg size.
The broad-based nature of the decline across varieties and retail sizes points to a general softening in rice prices during the period.
Context: Cost of Cooking Jollof Rice
Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the cost of preparing a pot of jollof rice for a family of five has climbed to almost N30,000, highlighting the growing pressure of food inflation on Nigerian households. According to the latest SBM Intelligence Jollof Index (Q2 2026), the national average cost of cooking the country's most popular meal rose from N25,798 in July 2025 to N29,578 in June 2026, representing a 14.6% increase within one year.
The report also revealed that over the past decade, the cost of making a pot of jollof rice has surged by 624%.
