China’s rice prices rising ‘several times a day’, but a bountiful northern harvest may change that
- All varieties of rice said to be ‘severely affected’, with weaker harvests in Jiangxi, Hunan and Hubei provinces
- Some farmers say their income is lower this year, despite the sharp rise in prices, after natural disasters hit yields
China’s grain traders and processing plants are suffering from a shortage of newly harvested rice as severe weather and the coronavirus pandemic have taken a hefty toll on south-central provinces, pushing up wholesale prices – a trend that is expected to last at least through the end of the year.
However, the central government is guaranteeing that the rice harvest in northern provinces will be one of the best in history – large enough to prevent a sharp rise in rice prices at the consumer level ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday that starts on February 12.
For the Chinese in south and central China, rice is a staple food, and its price is closely watched by a large share of consumers.
The price that grain traders pay farmers, and the price of the grain after it leaves processing plants, normally drop every October during the autumn harvest, but the trend has reversed this year due to weaker harvests in Jiangxi, Hunan and Hubei – China’s major rice-producing provinces.
“For example, the purchasing price of rice at the paddy was about between 120 and 145 yuan (US$18 and US$21.75) per 50kg (110 pounds) last year, and now it is priced at between 140 and 180 yuan,” said Chen Yun, who runs a 670,000-square-metre (7.2 million sq ft) rice farm in Jiangxi province.
