Brenda Goh & Dominique Patton

SHANGHAI/BEIJING – After the COVID-19 epidemics and heavy rainfalls which caused a spike in vegetable prices, concerns about shortages grew that families should have enough food in their homes.

Some domestic social media users expressed concern that the directive issued by Commerce Ministry was triggered possibly by Taiwanese tensions.

Economic Daily, which is a Communist Party newspaper supported by the Communist Party, responded that netizens shouldn’t have “too many of an overactive imagination” because the directive’s purpose wasn’t to keep them from being caught out if there was lockdown in their region.

Late Monday’s declaration by the Ministry urged local authorities and other government agencies to provide early warnings and ensure supply stability and price stability.

In the lead-up to China’s most significant holiday, the Lunar New Year (which will be celebrated in February 2014), the central government makes an extra effort to increase the availability of fresh vegetables, and pork.

However, this year’s efforts are even more important after severe weather in October decimated crops in Shandong, the largest country-wide vegetable grower. In addition to that, COVID-19-related outbreaks threatening food supply disruptions from the northeast to the northwest of the country have also made it more difficult.

The prices for broccoli, cucumbers and spinach more than doubled last week from October. According to Shouguang’s vegetable price index, Spinach cost 16.67 Yuan per kilogramme ($2.60), which is a major trading center in Shandong.

Although the price of goods and services has fallen in recent days economists predict a large year-on–year increase in inflation in October. It will be the first month in five.

Beijing’s food security has become a greater priority since the outbreak. After making this a top priority in 2011, the government has been working on a new food security law.

To ensure efficient and smooth distribution, the Commerce Ministry stated that vegetables should be purchased in bulk and that emergency deliveries networks must be strengthened.

The report stated that timely information about the commodities’ prices, supply and demand should be made available to stabilize the expectations of the public.

According to an official state television report, China plans to also release vegetable reserves at “the appropriate time”, to combat rising prices.

It’s not known which vegetables China has in its reserves or how large they are.

According to the report, the state planning body called for timely replanting vegetables and urged local governments to support fast growing produce.

The agriculture ministry said that China now has around 100 million mu (6,7 million hectares) of vegetable-growing land.

($1 = 6.3999