Average Price of Food Commodities Drops by 32% Over One Year – AGRA Food Security Monitor

The average price of food commodities in Ghana has declined by 32.69% over the past year, according to the November 2025 Food Security Monitor report published by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA).
The report, which monitors food security trends across 17 countries in Eastern, Southern and Western Africa, indicates that the decline in food prices has been even more pronounced over the last six months, averaging 37.13%.
According to AGRA, the sharp reduction in prices reflects improved food availability across the sub-region, largely driven by increased supplies from recent harvests.
“On the price front, all monitored West African countries have experienced drastic drops in their commodity prices over the past six months and one year due to increased supplies from recent harvests,” the report stated.
It highlighted steep declines in key staples across the region, noting that over the past six months, imported rice prices fell sharply in Burkina Faso (92.8%), Mali (62.9%) and Niger (84.2%), while maize prices declined significantly in Ghana (37.1%), Nigeria (44.2%) and Togo (98.2%).
Between October and November 2025, AGRA observed that staple food markets across West Africa recorded broad price easing, with only isolated volatility, supported by improved harvest inflows and seasonal supply patterns.
In Ghana, average maize prices per metric tonne dropped from US$407 in October to US$374 in November, representing an 8.1% decline. Similar trends were recorded in neighbouring Togo, where maize prices fell by 10% from US$338 to US$304, signalling price normalisation across the region.
Rice prices also softened across most markets during the same period. Nigeria recorded the sharpest decline, with prices falling by 13.3% from US$586 to US$508 per metric tonne. Ghana followed with a 9.2% drop, from US$1,157 to US$1,051, while prices in Togo and Burkina Faso declined by 7.7% and 7.5% respectively. Mali’s rice prices remained largely stable.
Millet prices recorded the most significant decline in Niger, falling by 19.7%, while Burkina Faso posted an 8.1% drop. Nigeria, however, recorded a slight increase of 2.2%, attributed to localised demand pressures. Sorghum prices also declined broadly across the region.
Difficult grains market in Ghana
Despite the overall price relief for consumers, the report flagged growing challenges for Ghanaian farmers. It noted that more than 1.2 million tonnes of rice, maize and soybeans remain unsold, leaving farmers unable to recover production costs.
AGRA said the National Buffer Stock Company’s additional GHS200 million (about US$18 million) procurement allocation has been insufficient to absorb the surplus. The continued grain export ban, disruptions to regional informal trade due to insecurity in Burkina Faso and policy shifts in Nigeria, as well as smuggled rice inflows through Togo and Côte d’Ivoire, have worsened the situation.
As a result, the report warned that many farmers and processors are considering cutting back production or switching crops in the next season.
The AGRA Food Security Monitor is supported by the Gates Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation and UK International Development.