Frequenters of their local wet market in Nanjing may have noticed a trend of late. The once go-to option for quality that’s both fresh and cheap has recently become borderline expensive. Primarily, that’s down to two factors; COVID and the weather.
At the Zhuquan Lu farmers’ market in Nanjing’s Jiangbei New Area, a wet-market owner admitted that a month or more ago, local Chinese cabbages were going for only ¥1.5 per 500 milligrams (一斤), but now they cost as much as ¥3 for the same weight.
As the most common and popular vegetable in Nanjing, the price of Chinese cabbage is directly related to output. The market owner told reporters that the cold waves in the weather of middle and late December meant that leaf vegetables were obviously frozen. With market volume suppressed, so the price suddenly rose.
But there are exceptions. In some areas, the price of Chinese cabbage has slumped to only ¥0.8 per 500 milligrams. It is understood this is due to the expansion of production areas in Hubei Province, resulting in an increase in output.
Another favourite with the Chinese, green beans and all its derivatives, has also seen a spike in prices of late, up to as much as ¥10 per 500 milligrams, an increase of 60 percent or more. Once again, the weather has been the deciding factor, not least, excessive rain of late in Yunnan Province.
Those price rises also apply to that spicy favourite with foreigners, the French beans or string beans (四季豆) which go into Sichuan Style Fried Beans (干煸四季豆).
Elsewhere and with other staples, while a reporter for the Yangtze Evening News found that ginger is at present generally sold for ¥12-15 per 500 milligrams, another increase of more than 60 percent compared with November of last year. Yet, The Nanjinger this afternoon, 6 January, visited a local-wet market in Jiangning District where the price was cheaper, at ¥9.80 per 500 milligrams.
With ginger normally used as seasoning in daily life, the onset of COVID has meant that many families have taken to making a tea at home, one infused out of ginger with spring onions. Some readers may be interested in other COVID remedies inspired by Traditional Chinese Medicine, as reported by this publication on 20 December.
But those prices are still quite a hike on a month or 2 ago. “There aren’t any cheap vegetables anymore”, a clerk in that same wet market said. But when quizzed on the price of potatoes and carrots, the same clerk said, “Ok, they’re still cheap”.
Going forward, the situation is likely to get worse before it gets better. Another new round of cooling is predicted for later in January, resulting in some vegetables being frozen, an accompanying slow growth and a general increase in costs.