Delayed trucks at mainland Chinese border push Hong Kong vegetable prices through the roof
- Supermarket vegetable stalls picked clean and vendors boost prices over delayed goods
- Unionist says dozens of cross-border truck drivers carrying vegetables stuck in Shenzhen after two of their colleagues reportedly test positive for Covid-19
Dozens of cross-border truck drivers carrying vegetables became stuck in Shenzhen after two of their colleagues reportedly tested positive at the crossing, a unionist said on Sunday.
In a statement, the city government confirmed that “some drivers” were required by the mainland authorities to undergo quarantine after they went to certain places without clearing it with officials.
Post reporters and photographers visited major supermarkets across the city on Sunday and found vegetables sold out in many places, while prices at some market stalls were reported to have more than doubled.
In Causeway Bay, a vegetable vendor surnamed Lei said the shortage had hit his income but he had marked up prices. He was selling Shanghai bok choy – a type of Chinese cabbage – for HK$24 a catty (about 600g), compared with HK$14 on other days.
“Many customers complained the vegetables were more expensive and they bought less,” said Lei, adding there was not much retailers could do because the supplies could not enter the city.
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At a Wellcome supermarket branch in Causeway Bay many of the shelves selling vegetables were picked clean by the evening. A similar situation was seen at several supermarkets on the other side of the harbour in Hung Hom and Tai Wai.
In Tai Kok Tsui, a worker at a vegetable stall said the supply had been very tight in the past couple of days. Broccoli at her stall sold for HK$38 a catty, more than double the usual price, she said.
Disruptions at the Wenjindu control point, known as Man Kam To check point on the Hong Kong side, began on Friday after a Hong Kong cross-border truck driver tested positive for Covid-19 when entering Shenzhen, according to the Container Transportation Employees General Union.
Union chairman Chan Dik-sau said the Shenzhen control point was then closed for several hours for infection-control procedures and investigation by health officers.
Another Hong Kong truck driver tested positive for the coronavirus on Saturday while staying in a designated hotel, according to Chan. Health controls were tightened and about 100 trucks for vegetables were said to have been stuck at the border awaiting disinfection, creating a new round of backlogs.
“Border operation resumed on Saturday night, but it took time to clear the backlog at the Shenzhen border and some trucks could not cross the border in time,” Chan said.
On the sharp rise in vegetable prices, Chan said: “Possibly some hawkers or retailers might have banked on the news of possible shortages to make more money. As far as the union understands, the supply has been more or less the same as usual.”
The Man Kam To checkpoint is a major gateway for fresh foods – including vegetables, meat and fish – going from the mainland to Hong Kong.
A spokesman for the Food and Health Bureau said they were told by the relevant mainland authorities that a cross-boundary goods vehicle driver went to sites that had not been reported to them before his entry.
“The mainland authorities needed to handle the incident seriously and conduct contact tracing in order to prevent the virus from spreading in the community. Some drivers were thus required to stay in a hotel for isolation,” he said.
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The mainland has also arranged for other registered drivers to deliver vegetables to Hong Kong, with some 20 trucks crossing over as of Sunday morning.
The bureau added that the supplies at the Vegetable Marketing Organisation and the Cheung Sha Wan Wholesale Food Market were not affected. While the vegetable supply at the Western Wholesale Food Market has decreased, the overall supply situation was still stable.
Meanwhile, cross-border supply of chilled pork, poultry and fresh eggs remained unaffected.
Hong Kong gets most its food supplies from the mainland, with 92 per cent of the city’s vegetables coming from there.
