Why Does Africa Still Buy What It Can Grow?

Walk through any open-air market in Lagos, Accra, or Nairobi, and you’ll likely find imported rice from Asia, frozen chicken from Europe, and processed tomato paste from China. 

This is in countries where rice fields stretch for miles, poultry farms dot the landscape, and tomatoes are grown in abundance. So the question begs: why does Africa still buy what it can grow?

Rooted in policy and infrastructureAt the heart of this contradiction is a mix of economic choices and structural neglect. Many African countries began liberalizing their markets in the 1980s and 1990s under pressure from international lenders. 

These reforms, often branded as “Structural Adjustment Programs,” reduced state support for local farmers and opened the floodgates for cheaper, foreign alternatives.

Without subsidies, storage facilities, or efficient roads, local farmers have struggled to compete. It’s not that Africa can’t grow food—it’s that producing and getting it to market has become more expensive than shipping it in from thousands of miles away.

The hidden costs of cheap importsOn the surface, imported food seems convenient. It’s often cheaper and available year-round. But the long-term cost is steep: weakened food sovereignty, loss of agricultural jobs, and a growing dependency on foreign suppliers.

 In Nigeria, for example, billions are spent annually importing rice, despite the country’s capacity to grow enough to feed itself.

Local farmers are often left with gluts during harvest season and empty wallets by the end of the year. Meanwhile, foreign producers often subsidized by their own governments continue to profit.

Broken supply chains, rotten opportunitiesA tomato farmer in northern Ghana might produce a bountiful harvest, but without cold storage or transport, most of it could spoil before reaching urban consumers. 

The same story repeats across the continent—post-harvest losses account for up to 30–50% of some crops. What’s grown doesn’t always make it to the plate.

And then there’s processing. 

Africa exports raw cocoa and imports expensive chocolate. It grows cashews but ships them abroad for shelling. This lack of investment in agro-processing means jobs and added value are lost elsewhere.

Taste, trust, and the rise of imported brandsThere’s also a psychological layer. In many African cities, imported goods are seen as “better”, a colonial hangover that still shapes consumer choices. People trust the packaging, the standardization, even the foreign labels. 

Local produce often lacks consistent quality control and branding, giving imports an edge.

Can Africa reverse the trend?It’s possible, but it requires political will, smart investment, and a cultural shift. Some countries are already taking bold steps. Nigeria once closed its borders temporarily to curb rice imports and encourage local production. 

Rwanda has invested heavily in transport and irrigation. Ghana is supporting local rice and poultry industries through targeted incentives.

What’s needed now is a continent-wide commitment to build resilient food systems. That means better storage, fairer trade policies, empowered cooperatives, and serious investment in agro-processing. It also means rebranding local food as something to be proud of, not just a last resort.

Future worth growingAfrica doesn’t need to reinvent agriculture, it needs to reclaim it. The soil is fertile. The farmers are willing. The demand is there. What’s missing is the infrastructure and policy framework that connects the dots. 

If Africa can grow it, then surely Africa can eat it too.

The sooner the continent stops outsourcing its plate, the stronger and more food-secure its future will be.