Nigeria spent $1.19 billion on food imports in the first half of 2026, an 11.41% increase from the $1.07 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2025, as demand for foreign exchange to finance imported food products rose in the second quarter.
The PUNCH reported the figures today Sunday, October 18, 2026, citing its analysis of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) Quarterly Statistical Bulletin for the second quarter of 2026.
The increase represents an additional $121.52 million spent on food imports compared with the first six months of 2025.
A breakdown of the CBN figures showed that Nigeria’s food import expenditure rose by 26.38% year-on-year to $650 million in the second quarter, from $514.34 million in the same period of 2025.
This increase more than offset the 2.57% decline recorded in the first quarter, when spending fell to $536.65 million from $550.79 million a year earlier.
April recorded the sharpest year-on-year increase, with foreign exchange spending on food imports rising by 54.28% to $217.74 million from $141.13 million in April 2025.
In May, expenditure increased by 8.59% to $220.26 million from $202.83 million, while June spending rose by 23.92% to $212 million from $171.08 million.
In the first quarter, January spending increased by 8.89% to $232.05 million from $213.11 million a year earlier.
However, expenditure declined by 22.90% to $150.87 million in February from $195.68 million, before recovering to $153.73 million in March, compared with $141.30 million in March 2025.
The increase follows a decline in Nigeria’s annual food import bill in 2025. The PUNCH reported on May 30, 2026, citing CBN data, that the country spent $2.34 billion on food imports in 2025, down 7.37% from $2.53 billion in 2024.
The first-half 2026 expenditure is already equivalent to about 51% of the total recorded for the whole of 2025.
However, the dollar figures differ from the naira-denominated food import data published by Nairametrics on September 9, 2026.
Nairametrics’ analysis of National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) foreign trade data showed that Nigeria spent ₦3.30 trillion on food and beverage imports in the first half of 2026, down 3.1% from ₦3.40 trillion in the corresponding period of 2025.
The figures cover different measures of imports and use different currencies, so they should not be treated as directly equivalent.
The rising dollar expenditure comes amid continuing concerns about food affordability and insecurity.
In a statement published on November 3, 2025, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations said the October 2025 Cadre Harmonisé analysis projected that 34.7 million Nigerians across 27 states and the Federal Capital Territory could face crisis-level food insecurity or worse during the June–August 2026 lean season.
The assessment identified insecurity, economic shocks, climate-related challenges, high food prices and declining purchasing power among the factors driving food insecurity.
The figures highlight the challenge of reducing reliance on imported food while expanding domestic agricultural production and improving access to affordable food.
