Locally produced rice, popularly known as “Abakaliki rice,” has become the grain of choice for consumers since the astronomical increase in price of imported rice.
Chairman of the United Creek Road Market Traders Association, Mrs Gloria Nonju , in a chat with The Tide, affirmed this, last Friday in Port Harcourt.
Nonju explained that in the last two months Abakaliki rice had replaced imported rice not just in the market but also on the tables of consumers as a more affordable variety.
According to her, “though I do not deal in rice, I know the demand and supply of the one they call stone-free “.
She expressed the hope that the production of the local rice would be sustained.
A visit by our correspondent to the Creek Road and New Layout Markets in the Township axis of Port Harcourt, revealed that most traders who used to sell foreign rice now stock only the Abakaliki brand.
One of the traders who spoke to us, Mr Blessing Azunda, stated “In all my years as a rice traders, I’ve not enjoyed such high patronage in local rice as I have these past months; the sale was very good.
On how much the rice was sold, he said, “we sell a 50kg bag of stone-free for N14,400, while the foreign rice is selling for N23,000, and one cup sells for N80.00”.
A nutritionist with the Braithwaite Memorial Specialist Hospital, Mrs Rose Lucky, said “the Abakaliki rice is actually more nutritious than foreign rice. Some of these foreign varieties are expired products they send to us which have lost their nutritive value while others, as you many have heard, are artificial rice made from plastic and starch”.

Tonye Nria-Dappa