By Dominique Patton

BEIJING (Reuters – China’s vegetable prices have risen after torrential rains flooded the crops in this month. The increase in prices is fuelling concerns over food at a time consumers should be ready for an increase in energy prices as winter approaches.

Unusually heavy rainfalls in the north of China drenched Northern China’s northern regions during September and January, floods which reached as far as Shandong, China’s largest vegetable-growing region.

Zhou Rui (a farmer who grows vegetables in 7 ha (17 acres) of Juancheng County in the province said, “All the vegetables have died in the ground.”

After fields of coriander, spinach and cabbage were submerged, she said, adding that there was not much left for pickers, as some farmers hadn’t replanted because it had become too cold.

From 6.67 Yuan per kilogram in September’s late September, the price of spinach rose to 16.67 Yuan ($2.61) this week. A price index released by Shouguang provincial vegetable trading center showed that.

Recent weeks have seen a more than twofold increase in the price of cabbage, cucumbers and broccoli.

China’s Twitter-like Weibo is abuzz with talk of rising prices. Many users claim that vegetables are now more expensive than pork, which was once the country’s main meat.

Coriander now costs 17.8 Yuan per half-kilo. It is much more expensive than pork! One user wrote this in Anhui, the eastern province.

This is alarming at a moment when inflation concerns are growing. Beijing government officials want sufficient food supply ahead of winter.

According to the City Government, Tuesday’s data showed that the average wholesale price for vegetables has increased by 39.8% in capital since last month. However, some leafy veggies have seen a more dramatic increase of over 50%.

Beijing’s authorities warned prices may rise in the coming weeks. The city is looking further south in order to get its produce when the temperatures drop and the high cost of transport increases.

While high vegetable prices will not cause an increase in consumer price inflation overall, it is likely that they occur at a time when rising fuel costs are being slowly passed along to consumers.

Darin Friedrichs from StoneX, senior Asia commodity analyst, said, “It is a very steep increase, so it is very noticeable.” In response, consumers may be budgeting for other goods.

In addition to higher operating costs in greenhouses due to rising energy prices, record fertiliser prices have been set this year.

“Our prices are up by at least 90% and we think that they could tripple during Chinese New Year,” said Xu Dan from the HortiPolaris greenhouse Beijing. He was referring specifically to China’s most important holiday next February.

I must find ways to improve our energy efficiency. It is impossible to ask customers to pay triple the price.

Chinese coal prices increased nearly 190% last year due to tight supplies after strict safety investigations in key mining areas. Meanwhile, heavy rains caused flooding of dozens northern coal mines.

($1=6.38268 renminbi)