From the Elbe back to the Yangtze, German hairy crabs in hot demand
Online sellers are taking pre-orders for hairy crab, which originated from China, but now mainly exist in Europe
Hairy crabs that once originated in China and went on to infest German waters are now returning to the mainland as edible delicacies which can be purchased online.
Jiangsu Dadi Yuansheng Agricultural Product Company has begun offering pre-orders for the Chinese mitten crab on Juhuashan, a subsidiary of popular e-commerce platform Taobao. According to the site, which has already received over 12,000 pre-orders, the crabs were caught in the Elbe River, which runs through Germany.
Juhuashan is selling different bundles with varying numbers of male and female crabs for prices starting at 199 yuan (HK$252). This is a far cry from their usual price in the mainland where they can sometimes fetch 700 yuan (HK$887) a kilogram.
Also known as Shanghai hairy crab, the Chinese mitten crab has been slowly disappearing in polluted Chinese waters, although they are still caught domestically and sold. By contrast, the crabs are thriving in Europe, where they were introduced by traders during the Opium Wars. In Germany, the crabs are regarded as a menace and had been blamed for hunting local species and causing 80 million euros (HK$828 million) worth of damage to dams in 2012.
Despite this, Juhuashan is advertising the crustacean imports as “cleaner” than domestic crabs from the Yangtze River and says all purchased crabs will only be distributed on six days of “limited shipping dates” starting from September 11.