The Story Behind “Derica”: How a Tomato Paste Brand Became a Measurement Unit in Lagos Markets
In the bustling food markets of Lagos, a common question echoes: “How much for a derica?” A customer points to a bowl brimming with rice. The salesman, Christopher Onyekwere, scoops grains into a worn-out tin can and announces the price. This tin, once a container for 400 grams of tomato paste, is now a familiar measuring tool in Lagos markets, despite its faded branding.
The term “derica” isn’t just a brand name; it has become a standard unit of measurement across Lagos and other Nigerian cities like Port Harcourt and Enugu. But where did this unique term come from?
From Tomato Paste to Market Measurement
Twenty-one-year-old Christopher shrugs when asked about the origin of “derica.” An older trader nearby, 49-year-old Henry Njoku, offers insight with a smile.
“You must have asked the wrong person,” Njoku says. “De Rica tomato paste was so popular when I moved to Lagos in the 1980s that people started using the empty tins to measure grains, beans, and other goods.”
De Rica was once synonymous with tomato paste throughout southern Nigeria. The brand’s cans were everywhere, so much so that food vendors began repurposing the empty tins as convenient measuring tools — each scoop known as a “derica.”
Food writer Yemisi Aribisala recalls her grandparents using the term in the 1970s and 80s. “De Rica was considered the best tinned tomato paste,” she explains. “Since vendors recycle so much, it made sense that these tins evolved into a unit of measurement.”
Other Local Measurement Units
The practice of using familiar product containers as units isn’t unique to “derica.” Vendors also use Blue Band margarine tubs to measure a “butter” and small tins once containing cigarettes to measure a “cigarette cup.”
In her 2017 book Longthroat Memoirs, Aribisala discusses how these traditional measurements don’t easily translate into ounces or pounds but remain popular because “good scales are expensive, and empty tins are free.”
The Decline of the Original Derica Tin
Despite the name, vendors today rarely use actual De Rica tins. At Njoku’s Idi Araba stall, he points to a collection of tins used for measuring dry goods. “None of these are De Rica cans anymore. They are hard to find,” he explains.
This decline follows the 2017 Nigerian government ban on imported tomato products, aimed at boosting local tomato production. With local factories unable to produce tin cans affordably, tomato paste—including De Rica—is now mostly sold in plastic sachets, leading to the disappearance of the iconic tin.
“Goment don ban am,” says Agatha Okonkwo, owner of AO Stores in the bustling Mushin market, using Pidgin English for “The government banned it.”
Okonkwo recalls the days when De Rica was the go-to brand for tomato paste. “There was a time Nigerians said ‘De Rica’ when they meant tomato paste,” she says, reminiscing about her mother cooking stews with it in the 1960s.
A Brand with Italian Roots
De Rica originated from a tomato processing factory started in 1912 in Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region. While the exact date it entered Nigeria is unclear, many Nigerians associate the brand with memories stretching back to the 1960s.
Today, the tomato paste market is more competitive. At Okonkwo’s shop, rows of cardboard boxes hold various tomato paste brands, mostly Sonia—“the cheapest”—and Gino, “the most popular.” Only one carton contains De Rica, reflecting its reduced market share even before the import ban.
Why “Derica” Endures
Despite changes in packaging and market dynamics, the term “derica” lives on as a practical measurement unit in Nigerian markets. It highlights how everyday objects become woven into local culture, transforming a simple tin can into a lasting part of daily trade and tradition.