Prices of food items in most markets in the Greater Accra Region have risen sharply over the past three months, a market survey conducted by The finder has revealed.

The level and frequency of price increases, according to traders, are alarming and worrying as they claimed they were making low sales.

The survey, conducted at the Kasoa and Kaneshie markets, revealed that the prices of rice, gari, palm kernel, onion, tomatoes and other foodstuffs had risen sharply.

One tomato seller told The Finder that a wooden carton of tomato had risen from GHC70 earlier in the year to GHC450 now, adding that she had no choice but to increase her price.

At both the old and new markets at Kasoa, 5kg of rice hitherto selling at GHC12 now sells at GhC16.5 while half a bag of rice has moved up from GHC55 to GHC72. The same 5kg bag of rice at the Kaneshie market sells between GHC15 and GHC17 while the half bag is going for GHC80.

A bowl of onion now sells at GHC15 from GHC8 two months ago at the Kasoa old and new markets while a bowl (paint container) of tomatoes now sells between GHC12 and was sold for GHC6.0. The same bowl of tomatoes was sold for GHC60 only three months ago.

Traders at the Kaneshie market are selling the same quantity of tomatoes at between GHC12 and GHC14.

An olonka of gari at Kasoa, which was sold in April between GHC17 and GHC2, is now going for GHC3.5 while an olonka of palm kernel at the same market now sells between GHC2.8 and GHC3.5 from a price of GHC1.2 early this year.

An interaction with some buyers at the markets revealed dissatisfaction over the rate at which prices of food were rocketing.

“We are now buying smoked tuna at GHC6; meanwhile only a few weeks ago, it was selling at GHC2.5,” said one woman.

Others lamented that salmon (smoked), which they were hitherto buying three for GHC1, was now being sold at one for GHC1.