Cost of Living: Nigerians seek alternatives as beef goes out of reach

Once a staple in Nigerian households, beef is fast becoming a luxury few can afford. With the price of meat rising astronomically in the last two years, many families have been forced to reconsider their sources of protein or abandon beef altogether. Market intelligence firm ReportLinker projects beef consumption in Nigeria will drop to around 320,000 tons by 2026, a significant decline for a country that has historically ranked among Africa’s top consumers and producers of beef.

Despite being home to one of the largest cattle populations on the continent (about 20.9 million head of cattle according to Statista), Nigeria lags behind in beef production, ranking sixth after South Africa, Tanzania, Chad, Ethiopia, and Sudan with an estimated output of 326,400 metric tons annually.

This contradiction between abundance and accessibility underscores a deeper crisis in the livestock sector. While Nigeria’s cattle numbers are impressive, poor infrastructure, insecurity, inflation, and outdated distribution systems have prevented the sector from meeting local demand in a sustainable or affordable way.

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From Makurdi to Maiduguri, Kano to Yenagoa, prices of beef have spiraled out of control. A kilogram of beef that sold for N2,500 in 2023 now goes for between N6,500 and N8,500, depending on the region and market conditions. Cows that once cost between N250,000 and N350,000 now sell for N650,000 to N3 million.

In Benue State, known as the food basket of the nation, families are struggling. For 27-year-old Tina Emmanuel, in Makurdi, the tradition of making a beef stew every Sunday has become unaffordable.

“At N6,500 per kilo, how do I feed my husband and three children?” she asks, clutching a small bag of dried fish she had purchased instead. “Even with N5,000, the butcher looks at you like you came to beg.”

Her story is not unique. At the Wadata and High Level markets in Makurdi, butchers say the demand for beef has plummeted. Teryima John, a butcher with over a decade of experience, said, “People are afraid to even ask for the price. A cow I used to buy for N200,000 is now half a million. It’s killing our business.”

Another butcher, Karaminsu Babbansu, echoed similar sentiments: “We used to slaughter up to eight cows a day, now it’s just two, and even that is hard to sell.”

In Lagos, our correspondent’s findings revealed that a kilo of beef formerly sold for between N5000 and N5,500 is now being sold for between N6,500 and N7,000 and N8,000.

Tajudeen Laisisi, a cattle dealer and butcher, said the prices of the animals increased generally from N500,000 to N900,000 on both the small, medium and big sized cows.

He blamed the increase on scarcity of the old species (dry season cow) to give way to the new species (wet season cow).

He said that a small sized cow, which went for between N350,000 and N400,000 is now being sold for between N500,000 and N600,000.

A butcher at Abiola Market in Agege, Yunus Nuru, said “Cow is now expensive. Some cows that we used to buy for like N500,000 in the past is now being sold at N1m upward. You can also get some cows within the range of N800,000. But the bigger ones start from N1m.

A resident, Anita Williams, said beef is no longer affordable for most households in the city, let alone the village community. “I used to buy like three kilos of meat at a go, but I hardly buy beyond one kilo these days, due to its current expenses. And even if you want to complement it with something like ice fish, you have to buy something worth N2000 to N3000, which will not take you anywhere.

Another resident, Mrs Doris, said in the past, she used to buy like two kilos of meat that could last for her medium-sized family, for a week. “But all I can afford to buy now, is just a one kilo, if at all” she noted, adding that she can only afford to buy fish now.

Hassan Muhammad said he has adjusted from buying five kilos of meat, to two kilos, where the meat would be cut into tiny pieces, in order to last for the same period. “Like in a one kilo before, we would cut it into about 10 pieces, but the same meat, we now cut it into about 30 pieces,” he stated.

Eunice Yahaya, who operates a restaurant in Kubwa, said she used to buy between 15 to 20 kilos of meat on average days but said what she buys now is about five kilos, as according to her the majority of her customers no longer include meat in their meals. “Some of them would even complain that they don’t have money to buy the food, or they would come with less than N500, expecting to get food from the restaurant.

“But I would give them to manage it, as I believe that they are telling the truth. I used to add different varieties of fish and meat in my cooking like stock fish, offals, and pomo, but now I would simply buy fish of about N2000”, she said. She lamented that things are becoming more difficult. She made a plea as follows: “Government should please do something urgently and help us, as we are dying”.

Kano’s booming market goes cold

In Kano, home to one of Nigeria’s largest livestock markets, the impact is similarly bleak. Mujitapha Abubakar, a meat seller at the Abattoir Market, said the price of a kilo of beef has risen from N4,500 last year to N7,000 today.

“People now ask for bones or offals instead. The actual meat is beyond them,” he said.

A cattle trader, Malam Aliyu Adamu, who once sourced animals from rural Kano and Jigawa, said he has stopped making such trips as inflation has eroded his capital. “A bull now costs up to N2.5m,” he said. “How do we survive without support from the government?”

Abdullahi Maikano, another trader, said meat sales have dropped significantly. “People would rather buy garri, rice or yam in bulk and abandon meat,” he said.

South South: Fish replaces beef

In Bayelsa State, cattle dealers at the Swali and Bayelsa Palm abattoirs say they now struggle to sell even a single cow a day, compared to four or five in previous years. A kilo of beef has jumped from N5,500 in December 2024 to N8,000 or more.

A father of three, Ismail Sanni, told our correspondent that a kilo of beef at Ojodu – Abiodun, Lagos – Ogun border community, is sold for N7,000.

“A kilo of beef is N7,000 and it’s just eight pieces,” he said.

Sanni said although beef is now beyond the reach of average Nigerians, it is still a better alternative compared to the cost of fish.  

“For instance, one Titus is N3,000. You can still use that amount to get some portion of beef (not kilo) and a little bit of pepper to cook it. So, beef is cheaper compared to fish,” he said.

Mrs Blessing Okoro, said she no longer purchased beef as the price was higher than her budget and purchasing power. Okoro said she had resorted to the purchase of fish for her family’s protein needs.

 “Many of us are stuck in this trade because we have been doing it for decades if not we could have found another job.

“Customers are complaining bitterly but we always beg them that we are buying cows at very high costs,” she said.

He called on the government to tackle the insecurity challenge and inflation with a view to reducing the price of cows.

In Ogun, prices of a kilo of beef ranges from N4,000 to N5,000. However, in most markets in Abeokuta, butchers resort to selling beef based on the capacity of the buyers from N2,000 upward.

An entrepreneur, Mrs Bisola Adeyemi – Pedro, said many families now eat without beef while others who cannot afford meat now substitute it with fried cheese( wara dindin) or portioned bone parts which sell between N1500 and N2,000.

In Akwa Ibom State, residents say they have been forced to change their diet, and reduce the number of kilos they buy because of the high cost of beef. 

Mrs Edidiong Akwa, a mother of three said the cost of beef has forced her to go for fish and  chicken. 

“With N7,000, I can buy a whole chicken. That is more profitable for me than using the same amount to buy beef. Chicken is even more nutritious than beef,” she said. 

Currently, a pound of beef is sold between N3,200 and N3,000,which equals N7,000 for a kilo compared to seven months ago when it was sold between N2,500 and N2,000. 

A food vendor in the University of Uyo cafeteria, Ms Esther Ekpo, lamented that the cost of beef was affecting their profit margin. 

Ekpo said even with the high cost of beef, some meat sellers have introduced unscrupulous measures just to shortchange buyers by adjusting the scale used to measure the beef.

“The cost of beef is high but there is nothing we can do than to buy, but it is not helping with our profit margin. Even though customers are complaining, there is nothing we can do. We sell to our customers the way we buy. We have no option than to sell to offset cost of purchase and make profit,” she stated. 

Mrs Magdalene Henry, a business women, who used to buy meat in bulk said the high cost has forced her to buy in bits. 

“I now buy meat in bits, not in bulk from the abattoir like I used to. In fact, I learnt the meat sellers at the abbatoir have embarked on strike to protest the high cost of beef,” she said.

“Most people now prefer fish,” said Madam Ebiere, a meat seller at Swali Market. “It’s cheaper and readily available.”

Baba Sadiq, a cattle dealer at Bayelsa Palm, said the fuel subsidy removal has particularly hurt traders in the region. “Transporting cows from the North to the South is now so expensive. Area boys, checkpoints, levies—we’re the ones paying for it all. That’s why meat is this costly,” he said.

Awara, roasted fish to the rescue

Some consumers told Weekend Trust that they switched to soyabeans cake popularly called awara and roasted fish due to the rising cost of beef.

They said for ceremonies and special occasions, rather than buy beef, they now purchase soyabeans cake and roasted fish to prepare their meals.

A consumer, Ibrahim Mohammed, said he used to buy beef in large quantities but now prefers fish—even though it is also expensive.

“I buy meat a lot but because of its rising cost, I have reduced consumption. I still buy meat but I buy roasted fish more. A kilogram of beef now is N6,500, something I bought for N4,000 or less in the past. So, even though fish is also costly, if you buy N6,500 worth of roasted fish, it would take you longer days,” he said.

Aliyu Abdulmalik also told our correspondent that roasted fish is cheaper, especially in rural areas, which is why he now prefers fish over beef.

Mallama Habiba Mohammed, a resident of Bosso, said they now use soyabeans cake instead of meat when preparing stews.

“Beef now is for the elite. We use Soyabean cake and sometimes, we don’t use anything. We just cook our stew like that,” she said.

Insecurity deepens scarcity

In Bauchi and Maiduguri, rising insecurity has worsened the situation. Boko Haram attacks have made it dangerous for herders to move cattle freely across the North-East, causing a drop in supply, Weekend Trust gathered.

“In the past, we got plenty of cattle from neighbouring countries like Chad and Cameroon,” said Alhaji Adamu Musa, a major cattle dealer in Bauchi. “Now, dealers don’t want to come here because the naira has lost value and the security risk is too high.”

Musa added that animal feed prices have also skyrocketed. “Maize and wheat bran are too expensive. Even those fattening cattle for sale are struggling,” he said.

At Maiduguri’s Gamboru cattle market, a butcher, Nasiru Ali, said the cost of a cow has jumped from N800,000 to N1.5 million in just a few months. “Customers say our beef is too expensive. But we too are barely breaking even.”

A cattle merchant in Abuja, Faruk Sulaiman, said their main source of cattle from states in the North west is in crisis, since the neighbouring country of Niger banned cattle exportation. “Before I used to supply cows from areas like Kafur, in Katsina State and return to Abuja on the same day. But following the embargo, I decided to travel to the border town of Maiaduwa in the same Katsina State, which is an international market.

“Things are very difficult even at the market, as you find about three people struggling to buy a single cow.”

 The cow merchant said a cow sold for N1.1 million in January this year is now about N1,5 million, following the ban by the government of Niger Republic.

“Before, I could buy like six to seven cattle from a single market, but all I can buy now is three -four cows from a single trip,” he lamented. The cattle merchant called for a diplomatic solution between Nigeria and the Niger republic, in order to save the situation from escalating.    

A slaughtered cow he noted is divided into various pieces like cow head, tail and legs, and all parts are carefully selected and portioned. He said the prices of  cow parts have risen significantly. He said presently, the head of a medium ranched cow is sold for N80,000, while the herders’ cow sold at N50,000. A leg of a medium ranched cow costs around N15,000, while a herder’s cow, is sold at around N8000. The tail of the ranched cow is sold at N50,000, while that of a herder, cost about  N30,000, he explained.

Alhaji Umar Sulaiman is the Sarkin Fawa, or butcher’s chief in Kubwa town. He disclosed that they used to slaughter between 30-40 cows on days like Fridays and Saturdays but they only slaughter like between 15 -20 cows now.

He said the cow they buy from the cattle market within the FCT, like Abaji, and Keffi in neighbouring Nassarawa State, that used to cost about N800,000 now go for about N1.2 million, with the additional transport cost, that contribute to the price of the meat, he added.

“As a result, you would find that many butchers can no longer afford to slaughter cows daily like before. I went to the SCC road cattle market located along the Bwari-Jere highway on Tuesday, with the intention to buy three cows, but I could not afford to get any cow at the market based on what I had budgeted for.

“I just returned disappointed without any cow. This is the current situation that we find ourselves in”, the butcher’s chief lamented. He disclosed that the herders who provide the majority of the cows that they buy are gradually losing their cows to the rustlers and also to the conflicts with farmers, citing what took place in states like Plateau, recently.

FG speaks

The Minister of Livestock Development, Alhaji Iddi Mukhtar Maiha, acknowledged that the system is broken and must be reformed. In a recent programme in Abuja, he described the current trade system as “outdated, wasteful, and misaligned with global best practices.”

He said trailers carrying livestock often pass through up to 700 checkpoints, paying an estimated N1.2 million in extortion fees. “By the time the cows reach consumers, prices have doubled,” he said.

The government, he added, is working with security agencies to dismantle these illegal checkpoints and is encouraging a shift toward processed meat.

He said plans are underway to establish hygienic abattoirs nationwide and attract investors, including from the Middle East, to process and export Nigerian meat.

“We must move beyond selling live animals,” Maiha emphasised. We should be processing meat, utilizing all parts of the animal for industrial purposes, and exporting value-added products,” he said.

The way forward

To make beef more affordable, experts urge the federal government to urgently address insecurity, streamline livestock movement, and invest in modern meat processing and distribution. They also calls for subsidizing animal feed and improving transport infrastructure.

With over 815 livestock markets in poor condition nationwide, the government’s inventory of these markets is expected to guide new investments in veterinary services, unloading bays, and better facilities that can empower both producers and consumers.

Until then, for most Nigerians like Tina Emmanuel, a rich pot of beef stew remains a nostalgic memory and an occasional indulgence.

Number of slaughtered cows drop in Lagos

Butchers said the number of cows slaughtered daily in Lagos State has dropped from 5,000 to 3,000.

The Lagos State Butchers Association’s patron, Alhaji Bamidele Kazeem, said the decline is due to the country’s ongoing socio-economic challenges.

He noted that the drop in cattle slaughter began in 2015 due to the Boko Haram insurgency and worsened with the current exchange rate crisis and inflation.

 “This reduction is due to numerous factors, including economic challenges, terror-related activities, and environmental concerns,” he said.

Kazeem expressed concern that the number of slaughtered cows could decline even further due to rising prices in the market.

“Previously, we could purchase a cow for between 400,000 and 500,000, depending on the breed, size, and location, but we now pay between 1.6 million and 1.7 million for a cow,” he said.

He attributed the drop in beef demand to the economic downturn, inflation, and rising cost of living.

He warned that the decline could negatively impact meat supply in the state.

Kazeem, therefore, urged the state government, butchers, and farmers to work together to address the issue.

Additional contributions by Adam Umar (Abuja), Abubakar Akote (Minna), Peter Moses, Dotun Omisakin (Lagos), Ini Abasi Umo (Uyo), Hope Abah (Makurdi), Sani Ibrahim Paki (Kano), Bassey Willie (Yenagoa), Hassan Ibrahim (Bauchi) & Hamisu Kabir Matazu (Maiduguri)