The record-breaking heat wave this summer is bumping up vegetable prices.
Continuous high temperatures and a lack of rainfall in the Kanto and Koshin regions have had a harmful effect on crops, causing a drop in the volume being shipped from production areas. The high prices are expected to continue for the time being, and it is feared they will impact household budgets.
In a supermarket in Nerima Ward, Tokyo, the prices of daikon radish, carrot, cabbage, spinach and others have increased since mid-July by about 50 percent compared to an average year. A shopper in the store said, "I'm thinking of cutting down on how often I serve salad, as every vegetable price is rising."
According to the Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Ministry, major vegetable production areas in the Kanto region and other areas have been hit by extreme heat since mid-July that has burned crops' leaves and caused some vegetables to rot, resulting in a decline in the shipping volume of vegetables grown outdoors. In addition to the scorching heat, continuous rain in the Hokkaido and Tohoku regions in mid-June is also believed to have spurred the price hikes.
As a result, 10 out of the 14 major vegetables dealt in at the Tokyo Metropolitan Central Wholesale Market on Monday fetched higher trade prices per kilogram than in an average year. The price of cabbage rose by 65 percent, that of cucumbers rose 40 percent and spinach by 26 percent. Even the price of lettuce, which had been low due to a good harvest, rose 16 percent.
In western Japan, the aftermath of heavy rains caused price increases at an Osaka market for such vegetables as naganegi long onion, cucumber and okra.
Wholesale price hikes are not directly reflected in the prices in shops. However, the operator of a fruit and vegetable shop called Shinjuku Yaoya in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo, is concerned that the trend may be prolonged, saying: "All kinds of vegetables [including root vegetables] have gotten scarce, and their prices have begun to rise. We can't predict what will happen now or in the future."
According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, average temperatures in mid-July in the Kanto, Koshin and other regions hit their highest levels since comparable data was first compiled in 1961. The amount of precipitation in many places in those regions has remained at 70 percent of an average year since mid-May.
High temperatures are expected to continue until early August at least, and the agriculture ministry predicts that vegetable prices will remain high for the time being.
Financial planner Fujiko Azuma said, "One of the options [for cooking] is not to stick to leaf vegetables but to also use mushrooms, onions and frozen vegetables, the prices of which are relatively stable."
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