Aside from the price of the commodity which has gone up by about 40 per cent, reports show that it has also become scarce in major markets in the area.
At the popular Uchi market in Auchi and Jattu market at Jattu, brown beans measured in a Custard bucket now sells at N1000 as against N600 it was sold for about a month ago.
Similarly, the price of a cup of the commodity has increased from N40 to N80 just as the same quantity of white beans sells for N60, up from N30.
A Custard bucket of the white type has also gone up to N850 from the former price of N500 in all the markets.
Some residents, described the scarcity of beans and the attendant high price as "terrible", lamenting that it had further made things difficult for the ordinary people.
One of the residents, Mrs Rachael Ehigimetor, said: "This is certainly a difficult period for us, especially the poor. The price increase of beans is just too much.
“One now goes to market and becomes afraid to get close to where they are selling beans.
“It is as bad as that, and the situation has forced residents to resort to the native beans which is often difficult to prepare because it takes longer time to cook.”
Another resident, Jennifer Oreye, lamented: “One wonders how they came about this sharp increase in the price of beans and the reason for the scarcity. We really do not know what is happening.''
At Uchi market, a beans seller, Mrs Dana Raheem, attributed the rise in price of the commodity to scarcity, saying there was a shortage in supply around the country.
She said that it was usual for the commodity to be scarce during this period of the year, but admitted that the prevailing one was much and had resulted in high increase in price.
However, Mrs Rose Oise, another seller of the commodity, said the price would drop "when fresh beans begin to come into the market".
“What we have now is the old product, harvested long ago.'' (NAN)
