Butchers and consumers of various kinds of livestock, especially cattle and goats have decried the persistent rise in the prices of the animals.
Some of the butchers, who spoke in Abuja on Sunday, said that the price increase was a concern as it was affecting their businesses negatively.
They appealed to the government to devise a way to assist in crashing the prices to increase purchasing power of consumers.
A butcher at Mararaba market, Mr Everistus Nnamani, said that a big sized cow sold initially for N800,000 now cost between one million and N1.5 million.
Nnamani said that a medium sized cow which was sold at between N400,000 and N500,000 now cost between N600,000 and N700,000.
He said that a small sized cow which went for between N150, 000 and N200, 000 now goes for N400, 000.
He attributed the constant hike in price of cattle to scarcity and high cost of diesel, fuel and insecurity.
”The constant increase in the price of cow is affecting my business. Before now, I buy like six to 10 cows and keep them to slaughter and sell them one after another.
”Now, for me to purchase one cow is even difficult because of the price.
”I spend more money buying one than before and most of my profit goes into buying.
”Another issue that is causing increase in price of cow is kidnapping.
”Bandits now prefer to kidnap trailer load of cow and sell them,” he said.
A butcher and trader of goat meat at Nyanya market, Mr Kelechi Odo, said that the exchange rate was the major cause of the hike in prices of goat.
He said that they usually buy their goats from neighbouring countries like Niger and Cameroon.
Odo said that a small sized goat which initially cost between N15,000 and N18,000 is now being sold for between N25,000 and N28,000.
The butcher said that a medium sized goat is now being sold for between N27,000 and N28,000 when compared to between N20,000 and N22,000 that it was sold initially.
Odo said a big sized goat was now being sold for between NN32,000 to N35,000 as against N28,000 it was sold before.
Another butcher, Yusuf Ali, a dealer of ram at the Kugbo ram market, said that ram was being sold for between N50,000 and N150,000 depending on the size.
A customer, Mrs Christiana Agede, said that a kilo of cow meat which was initially sold for between N4500 and N5000 , now goes for between N5,500 and N6,000.
Agede said she rarely patronised the sellers because of her low purchasing power.
Agede said her family had resorted to consumption of brisket bones as alternative to meat.
She said that eggs were initially her family’s respite for meat but withdrew when the price of eggs skyrocketed.
”We now buy brisket bones as alternative to meat in my house.
”I prefer it because when you buy at least N1,500 worth of brisket bones, it looks bigger and it is more nutritious.
”My children do not like it but I have convinced them to always consume it because of its nutritive value,” she said.
Another consumer and a civil servant, Mrs Elizabeth Adodi, expressed worry over the continuous increase in prices of meat.
Adodi said that although prices of some food items were already coming down, the price of livestock was still increasing.
She appealed to the government to extend the same efforts that helped in crashing some food prices to the livestock sector to reduce the price of meat in the market.
NAN
