The day when cheap and safe "Chinese vegetables" take over supermarkets

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The radiation leak caused by the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident has dealt a major blow to vegetables grown in Tohoku and eastern Kanto. Not only are harvested crops unsellable, but planting is also difficult for some time to come. With concerns about shortages on the market, food trading companies and manufacturers have turned their attention to imported vegetables, especially those from China, which are cheaper.

Import volume of Chinese vegetables and fruits
Enlarge photo
Import volume of Chinese vegetables and fruits
Kunimoto Ryusei, sales manager at Kyoei Land (Ota Ward, remove background image Tokyo), a vegetable import company where more than 90% of the products it handles are produced in China, says, "Over the past two to three weeks, we've seen an increase in inquiries from fruit and vegetable markets, the restaurant industry, and processing plants. We've seen demand for a wide range of vegetables, including leeks, onions, cabbage, carrots, and garlic. Prices have risen by about $50 to $100 per ton, helped by the weak yen and higher labor costs due to increased shipping work."

Even though Chinese food is accepted at restaurants and in processed foods, it is true that ordinary households are resistant to Chinese food due to safety concerns. In the aftermath of the pesticide-laden frozen gyoza scandal in 2008, trade statistics from the Ministry of Finance showed a drop in 2008 and 2009. However, the culprit in this case was processed foods. As for vegetables and fruits, their safety can be guaranteed, as they cannot be imported unless they pass the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries' plant quarantine inspection and the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare's pesticide residue inspection.

The key to predicting the future will be to what extent the supply of domestic vegetables will recover and whether low prices can be sustained. Kunimoto also said, "One month after the disaster, for example, the wholesale price of 10 kg of onions was 2,100 yen for domestic onions and 700 yen for Chinese onions, a three-fold difference, which should be very attractive to consumers."