Home cooks decry rising vegetable prices

A recent surge in vegetable prices has prompted Li, a 34-year-old Beijing resident who regularly cooks at home to manage expenses and maintain a balanced diet, to rethink her strategy.

Li, who only provided her surname, has witnessed significant price hikes in large-leaf spinach and cucumbers. The cost of 600 grams of cucumbers on an online grocery platform has soared from 2 yuan (28 cents) to nearly 7 yuan in just a few months, while 300 grams of spinach now sells for 9 yuan, up from 2.5 yuan.

Frustrated, Li shared screenshots on social media to highlight the changes.

"My vegetable preferences are quite consistent, so I am particularly attuned to the price fluctuations of each type of vegetable," she said.

The sudden price hikes have dampened Li's enthusiasm for cooking.

"I've opted for takeout several times recently and found it more economical than preparing meals at home," she said. "Vegetable price fluctuations are common, but this recent surge has been truly surprising."

Li is among a growing number of home cooks feeling the pinch from rising food prices due to high temperatures and frequent rainfall this summer.

The average wholesale price of 28 vegetables tracked by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs rose from 4.29 yuan to about 6 yuan per kilogram between June 17 and Aug 14 — a nearly 40 percent increase over two months.

Wang Enhui, who lives in a housing complex in Beijing where rents are subsidized and frequents local produce markets, said prices for vegetables such as eggplants and green peppers have more than doubled or even tripled in recent months, surpassing the usual high costs seen during winter.

"Only potatoes seem to have maintained a stable price," Wang said, adding that two eggplants she recently bought cost 8 yuan.

Analysts said vegetable prices typically tend to rise slightly in hot seasons, when most vegetables are supplied from China's southern regions. Prices generally decrease as produce from the north becomes available in October.

However, this summer, provinces including Hunan, Shandong, Sichuan and Anhui have been hit by persistent storms and severe weather, leading to decreased production, supply chain disruptions and higher prices.

"Compared to grains, vegetable prices are more susceptible to seasonal fluctuations," said Li Ganqiong, a farm produce market analyst at the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences in Beijing. He explained that high temperatures increase costs associated with production, including irrigation, and affect yields.

In China, vegetables are sold not only at supermarkets, but also in wholesale and traditional markets, which often lack adequate cold chain facilities, leading to higher losses during transportation in hot seasons.

"The hot weather primarily affects leafy vegetables because they are prone to wilting," Li Ganqiong said.

To mitigate future price spikes, he recommended the expansion of greenhouse facilities to enhance resilience against extreme weather and extend the growing season for agricultural produce.

"In recent years, the development of greenhouse vegetables in China has helped reduce fluctuations in vegetable prices," he said. "While open-field vegetables still dominate the market, greenhouse vegetables are steadily gaining ground."

Wang Ruiyuan contributed to this story.

lilei@chinadaily.com.cn