Yaounde - Post Report Question and Answers
How would you describe the availability and cost of groceries and household supplies relative to your home country?
Groceries can seem expensive as many products are imported from France. Carrefour is the main supermarket and is well stocked with goods. Vegetables and fruit can easily be bought at the market and are inexpensive compared to the prices in the mall. The butcher is excellent (Central Gel) and stocks a range of meat, cheese and wines. - Feb 2023
Decent. There are (2) Casino grocery stores, Care Four, and Dovv. You can pretty much get anything here. - Feb 2022
I think we are able to get most of what we need - especially with the diplomatic pouch. There are bakeries everywhere, and we get our meat from the local butcher. There are also a number of grocery stores with all of the basics - I have Celiac disease and was pleasantly surprised to find they have a good selection of gluten-free products on the shelves of the import store. There is a store here that is very close to an American Target store, called Orca, with everything from decorative bathroom curtains/sets and kitchen supplies to furniture, but it is at least 2X the price of anything you would buy in the states. My kids' biggest complaint is the taste of shelf-stable milk - which is the only kind we can find here. Otherwise we are happy with the food. - Jan 2020
Groceries are more expensive in the supermarkets here (Dovv, Mahima, Casino) as the goods are all imported. If you see something in the supermarket that you want buy it up, as you never know if it will be there next week (or even the week after). It is always an unknown as to whether what you say there last week will be there next week. Buy accordingly! - Jun 2018
The availability and cost were both better than I expected. The main supermarkets (Casino, Mahima, Dovv, etc.) aren't huge, but they're well-stocked. There's also a very nice butcher than has quality meats at U.S. prices or better as well as a nice selection of cheeses. The commissary at the embassy is very well stocked as well, including a large selection of frozen foods that fills in the gaps where products are too expensive or not available locally. For dry products, Amazon or other online grocers come in handy to get better prices on dry products such as cereal that tend to be more expensive locally. - Apr 2017
There are 3 main grocery stores here, Casino, Dov, and Mahima. All are very expensive. The Embassy has a large commissary stocked with American food ( dry & frozen) which makes it convenient for embassy personnel. - Apr 2014
Yaounde has a few ok groceries stores. The selection is ok. There are no fresh dairy products available in Yaounde, at least while we were there. Fresh produce, chicken, and beef is bought from the market. Then your housekeeper soaks it up in bleach water to kill all the bacteria on it. What makes Yaounde special is that the Embassy has a frozen food shipment once a year. Think spare ribs, blueberries and strawberries. You make a bulk order, store it in your freezer and ration it out for the rest of the year. Lots of people go heavy on the cheeses and meats. There is a new butcher shop in town, so maybe that'll cut down on the ordering of meat, but it sure is nice to order those special American treats. Christmas hams, Thanksgiving turkeys, etc. - Jan 2014
Expensive. Fresh fruit and vegetables are freshest in the local markets, but you have to be careful and pick yourself. The sellers don't like to but will sell smaller quantities. 6 pack of President milk at Casino will cost you 6290CFR, small loaf of bread 450cfr at Calafatas, 6pk of Water 1830cfr, Cheerios 4290cfr, 3 pk paper towels 1490cfr. You have to negotiate when shopping and best buys can but are not always at Marche Centrale. - May 2012
Groceries are reasonable to expensive, and not always available. Produce is expensive. - Sep 2011
Expensive, expensive, expensive!There are a number of decent grocery stores that offer a variety of European brands of foods and fresh produce, but it is very costly because most everything is imported. Milk is not fresh, it is UHT.For the comfort foods and familiar brands of toiletries and such, the US Embassy has a SMALL commissary, and things on the shelves there are all too frequently out of date. However, the commissary does provide a shipment of frozen foods and another shipment of dry goods once a year that they open up to the embassy community. You have no idea what a morale booster it is to be able to order Digiorno pizzas and Kraft cheese and chicken nuggets! - Mar 2010
Groceries are extremely expensive, everything is imported. Grocery stores here are more expensive than in Paris. Cameroon manufactures nothing, even the milk and eggs in stores come from France. - Jan 2010
Fresh produce is plentiful, delicious, organic, and relatively inexpensive if you can barter in French. The pineapples, mangoes, bananas, and avocados are especially good. All the supermarkets are quite overpriced but they carry most items that can be found in the USA. - Nov 2008
Western goods are readily available, but marked up significantly. Substitutes are available, but often of very low quality. - Sep 2008
There are a few new, Western-style grocery stores - combined with the small commissary, I have found everything that I need. - Jun 2008
Fresh fruit/vegetables, flour, bread, eggs, milk and meats are readily available and affordable. Your chicken won't be boneless or headless, but it's available. Canned goods are expensive and usually dented. Many cooking goods are available, but bring you're own unique spices (such as anything Tex-Mex or Mexican food related)Paper goods, automotive parts, detergents, cosmetics, hygiene products, and clothes are very expensive and of poor quality. - Jun 2008
