{"id":1769,"date":"2026-07-15T18:12:19","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T17:12:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mediaconversation.com\/?p=1769"},"modified":"2026-07-15T18:12:20","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T17:12:20","slug":"abraka-farmers-blame-high-fuel-costs-for-rising-crop-transportation-fees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mediaconversation.com\/?p=1769","title":{"rendered":"Abraka Farmers Blame High Fuel Costs for Rising Crop Transportation Fees"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Ogberahwe Bright Eucharia<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Smallholder farmers on the outskirts of Abraka have expressed concern over the rising cost of transporting agricultural produce, warning that increasing fuel prices may worsen food affordability in the community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Farmers who transport crops such as cassava, yam, and maize from surrounding farm settlements to markets in Abraka say transportation expenses have more than doubled due to the rising cost of petrol. They linked the increase to the current fuel price, which they said averages between \u20a61,250 and \u20a61,300 per litre at filling stations across Ethiope East Local Government Area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The situation has placed additional pressure on farmers, especially those involved in cassava production and processing. Many local women who harvest cassava and process it into garri said the high cost of transportation is affecting their businesses and reducing their profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mrs. Florence Egbi, a veteran farmer who supplies produce near Delta State University (DELSU), said transporting cassava from farms to town has become increasingly expensive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe used to pay \u20a63,000 to hire a local carrier to bring a motorcycle load of harvested cassava from the farm gate into town. Today, drivers are charging \u20a67,000 minimum for that same distance. If we can\u2019t pay, our harvest sits in the bush and rots. If we do pay, we have to increase the price of a basin of garri at the market just to break even,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The increase in logistics costs has affected the agricultural value chain, leading to higher prices for food items and reducing farmers\u2019 earnings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, transport operators said they are also affected by the rising cost of fuel and vehicle maintenance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. Jude Omena, a local pickup truck driver who frequently operates on rural roads, explained that the increase in transportation charges is a result of the economic realities facing drivers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is not our intention to punish the farmers or the traders. When you spend hours waiting at a filling station and buy petrol at these current rates, you realise you are barely making a profit after vehicle maintenance. Carrying heavy bags of yams over bad, bumpy roads damages our suspensions, and spare parts are expensive,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Agricultural stakeholders in Abraka have warned that the situation could affect food supply if urgent measures are not introduced. Some market women at Abraka Main Market predicted that food prices may continue to rise unless transportation challenges are addressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Farmers\u2019 cooperatives are appealing to the Delta State Government to provide agricultural transport support, including subsidised farm vehicles, and improve rural feeder roads to reduce transportation and maintenance costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until such interventions are implemented, farmers and consumers, including students in Abraka, may continue to face the effects of rising food prices linked to increased fuel and transportation costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Ogberahwe Bright Eucharia Smallholder farmers on the outskirts of Abraka have expressed concern over the rising cost of transporting agricultural produce, warning that increasing fuel prices may worsen food affordability in the community. Farmers who transport crops such as cassava, yam, and maize from surrounding farm settlements to markets in Abraka say transportation expenses […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1770,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"iawp_total_views":67,"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[66,489,233],"class_list":["post-1769","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-trendingnews","tag-agriculture","tag-crop-prices","tag-farming"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mediaconversation.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1769","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mediaconversation.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mediaconversation.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mediaconversation.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mediaconversation.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1769"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/mediaconversation.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1769\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1771,"href":"https:\/\/mediaconversation.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1769\/revisions\/1771"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mediaconversation.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1770"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mediaconversation.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1769"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mediaconversation.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1769"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mediaconversation.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1769"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}