Nigeria drives W/Africa’s soybean market – The Nation Newspaper
July 6, 2026 by Daniel Essiet
Nigeria drives W/Africa’s soybean market
soybeans
Nigeria is cementing its position as the anchor of West Africa’s soybean economy even as a widening gap between local production and domestic demand attracts new buyers from as far away as India and draws United States exporters eager to expand their footprint in the region
Data from the World Bank’s Commodities Price Data (Pink Sheet), Trading Economics, IndexBox’s Western Africa Soya Bean Market Analysis 2026, the Lagos Commodities and Futures Exchange (LCFE), Anderson International, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) and other industryrket despite persistent supply deficits
According to Anderson International, Nigeria is Africa’s second-largest soybean producer, harvesting about 1.35 million metric tons (MMT) annually. However, that output meets only about half of estimated domestic demand, which now exceeds 2.7 MMT each year
The deficit is being driven primarily by demand from the poultry industry, which accounts for roughly one-third of soybean consumption, alongside a rapidly expanding aquaculture sector facing an estimated 2 MMT feed supply shortfall
Regionally, IndexBox’s Western Africa Soya Bean Market Analysis 2026 identified Nigeria as the dominant soybean consumer in West Africa, with annual consumption estimated at 4.3 million tons—more than the combined total of every other country in the region. The report attributed rising demand to increased processing of soybeans into meal for livestock feed and edible oil, supported by Nigeria’s growing population, urbanisation and rising incomes. It projects sustained double-digit annual growth in demand for high-protein soybean meal through 2035.
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Trade patterns across West Africa presented a more complex picture than production figures alone suggest. According to the IndexBox report, Togo, rather than Nigeria, is the region’s largest soybean importer, recording imports worth about $34 million, representing 81 per cent of regional imports, largely because of its role as a processing and re-export hub built around its port infrastructure. Nigeria ranks second, with soybean imports valued at approximately $3.6 million
Domestic soybean prices have remained firm during the first half of the year, According to the Lagos Commodities and Futures Exchange, soybeans sourced from Niger, Nasarawa and Kebbi states traded between ₦640 and ₦700 per kilogramme. At the Exchange, soybean prices are currently hovering around ₦447,000 per metric tonne, reflecting continued strength in export demand at the upper end of the market. However, a market intelligence report by Raji Consulting International indicates that soybean prices moderated compared with last year. The report found that prices in April 2026 ranged between ₦555 and ₦670 per kilogramme across seven monitored markets in Taraba, Kaduna, Kano and Benue states, compared with ₦800 to ₦889 per kilogramme during the corresponding period in 2025.
According to the report, Benue State recorded an average year-on-year price decline of 24 per cent. Naka market fell by ₦200 per kilogramme, Aliade by ₦170, Mutun Biu by ₦223 and Mai Hula by ₦334 compared with the same period last year
The survey, conducted between April 10 and April 30, covered Mutun Biu and Mai Hula in Taraba State, Saminaka in Kaduna State, Sabon Kaura in Kano State, and Aliade, Gbajimba and Naka in Benue State
Taraba emerged as the exception, showing signs of demand-driven recovery. According to the report, Mutun Biu market recorded a 17.6 per cent week-on-week increase to ₦666 per kilogramme during the first monitoring period as buyers competed for tightening supplies
“Demand was very strong and supply was unable to keep pace, with buyers actively competing for available lots,” the report said, adding that prices there could climb towards ₦700 per kilogramme if shortages persist
In Benue State, the report attributed greater market stability to local institutional interventions. At Aliade market, the traders’ association introduced a price floor of ₦630 per kilogramme to stabilise transactions and prevent contract defaults. In Naka, the Benue Bag Reform, a mandatory packaging standardisation initiative, added about ₦300 per bag in packaging costs while improving quality authentication for processors
Separate market intelligence from Jengre Market in Plateau State placed soybean prices between ₦70,500 and ₦74,500 per bag last month, noting that prices had “strengthened further, trading above ₦70,000 per bag.”
Across the border, the Ghana Commodity Exchange listed Soya Bean Grade 2 at GHC5,285
Internationally, the World Bank’s Commodities Price Data (Pink Sheet) placed soybean prices at about $440 per metric tonne in January 2026, with monthly prices ranging from approximately $404 to $462 per metric tonne. More recent data from Trading Economics showed benchmark soybean futures trading at 1,122.19 US cents per bushel on July 1, 2026, representing a 6.82 per cent increase from a year earlier
A sharp shift in Indian trade flows is also creating fresh export opportunities for Nigeria and other African producers. According to Reuters, Indian traders cancelled approximately 25,000 metric tonnes of soymeal export contracts—the first such cancellations since 2021—after domestic soybean prices surged. They subsequently secured about 80,000 metric tonnes of soybean imports from African countries
Meanwhile, the United States is positioning itself as a complementary supplier rather than a competitor to farmers. Executive Director, Soy Excellence Center and Sub-Saharan Africa, in the U.S. Soybean Export Council (USSEC), Brent Babb, reportedly said Nigeria imported 62,000 tonnes of U.S. soybeans in early 2025 after a six-year hiatus. Speaking at the USSEC & U.S. Soy Nigeria: Now Conference 2026 in Lagos, Babb said: “Over 60 per cent of the U.S. soybean crop is exported worldwide. We’ve worked extensively in Asia and North Africa, and we see strong opportunities in Sub-Saharan Africa, with Nigeria as the regional leader.” He added: “Nigeria grows soybeans, but as demand for consumption rises, more soybeans will need to be imported. Our role is to complement Nigeria.”
Babb stressed that the relationship should be viewed as collaborative rather than competitive
“We’re here for the long term. This isn’t a competition with local soy production. Local production and imports can grow together,” he said.He also identified financing and value chain consistency as major constraints.”Financing is often the biggest challenge—pulling all the pieces together. The other is consistency across the value chain. You need quality day-old chicks, reliable soybean supplies for crushers to run at high capacity, and consumer demand that can withstand inflation,” he said.
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