Falling Rice Prices Bring Relief to Households, Food Vendors as Cedi Gains Strength

The cedi continues to appreciate against the dollar, offering Ghanaian households and food vendors reduction in prices. The strengthening currency is helping to ease import costs, translating into lower retail prices for imported food staples.

Over the past few weeks, several popular brands of imported rice have seen significant price drops. A bag of Dubai rice, previously selling for GH¢460, now goes for GH¢370. Millicent rice has fallen from GH¢525 to GH¢420, while K75 rice, which sold at GH¢560, is now retailing at GH¢450.

This price adjustment follows a sustained appreciation of the Ghanaian cedi, which has firmed up from around GH¢15.61 in January 2025 to GH¢10.79 per US dollar in late May 2025, with analysts expecting the currency to potentially break the GH¢10.00 mark in the coming weeks.

Boost for Households and Food Businesses

For households, especially low-to-middle-income families, the drop in rice prices offers some relief from the recent cost-of-living pressures. Rice remains a staple in many Ghanaian homes, and reduced prices mean families can afford more food for the same amount of money, or save money to meet other essential needs. 

For food businesses such as local rice sellers, chop bars, street food vendors, and restaurants offering rice-based meals like waakye, Jollof, fried rice, and Omo tuo”( rice ball), the reduced cost of their raw materials allows for better profit margins or price stability for customers. Vendors who previously had to either shrink portion sizes or increase meal prices to cope with high costs can now adjust pricing strategies more favourably.

Economic Outlook of Falling Prices

The improved performance of the cedi could also help see an ease in inflation. Ghana’s annual consumer inflation dropped for the fourth consecutive month to 21.2% in April 2025 from 22.4% in March, according to the Ghana Statistical Service. The Bank of Ghana has maintained its policy rate at 28.0%, reinforcing its tight monetary stance to contain inflationary risks.

Analysts say if the currency continues to perform well and inflation keeps falling, more imported food items could follow the downward pricing trend, offering further relief to consumers and small business operators. At the start of the cedi depreciation however, Food and Beverage Association of Ghana (FABAG) Executive Secretary John Awuni confirmed that prices of sugar and rice have fell by 7% and 10%, respectively. The association also called for a nationwide campaign to reduce prices, appealing to industry peers to join efforts to deliver real relief to consumers.

The drop in rice prices is a positive signal for Ghana’s economy, proof that macroeconomic stability can have real, direct benefits for everyday citizens. 

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