President Bola Tinubu has issued a directive to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) to take urgent steps to reduce food prices nationwide.

He wants the FEC to focus on on ensuring the safe movement of farm produce across transport routes.

The order was disclosed by Aliyu Sabi Abdullahi, Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security at a one-day capacity-building workshop for Senate correspondents in Abuja.

According to the minister transportation remained a key driver of food inflation, BusinessDay reports.

Abdullahi said: “In addressing the high cost of transporting farm produce, I can say on good authority that the President has issued a marching order. A federal executive council committee is already working on how to guarantee safe passage of agricultural foods and commodities across routes in the country.

“If you know the amount of money being spent moving commodities before they reach markets, you will understand why they are expensive at the point of delivery."

Abdullahi said Tinubu’s directive was in line with his broader food sovereignty agenda, which targets not only sufficiency but also availability, accessibility, affordability, nutrition and sustainability.

The minister also announced plans to launch a Farmer Soil Health Scheme and a cooperative reform and revamp programme designed to mobilise resources and strengthen grassroots economic activity.

He added: “Mr. President has shown tremendous interest in the cooperative sector as a veritable tool for economic activity generation and improving members’ livelihoods."

Key food prices drop in price

In another development, the Financial Derivatives Company, Limited has announced that food prices is one the downward trend.

According to data from its commodity price report, in August 2025 revealed that 50kg bag of rice dropped from N87,000 to N85,000, representing a 2.29% decline, while beans (Oloyin, 50kg) fell to N80,000 from N82,000.

Similarly, garri (50kg yellow) slipped to N32,000 from N33,000, a 3.03% reduction. Flour (50kg) also dropped to N63,000 from N65,000, signaling moderate relief for consumers.

Also, A basket of tomatoes fell by 31.82%, dropping to N75,000 from N110,000, while a big bag of pepper eased to N75,000 from N80,000.

Onions also declined by 4.54%, falling to N105,000 from N110,000. New yam (3 tubers) price reduced by 18% to N13,500 from N16,500.

Palm oil (5L) decreased slightly to N11,500 from N12,000, while sugar (50kg) fell to N80,000 from N82,000.

New inflation report

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that the National Bureau of Statistics has released the latest inflation rate figures which measures the cost of goods and services over a period.

On a month-on-month basis, the Headline inflation rate in July 2025 was 1.99%, which was 0.31% higher than the rate recorded in June 2025 (1.68%).

The Food inflation rate in July 2025 was 22.74% on a year-on-year basis.