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| China-Japan-Koreas |
| Serious Impact on China Crops Warned |
| 2008-01-31 |
| A top agriculture official warned Thursday that snow battering central China has dealt an "extremely serious" blow to winter crops, raising the likelihood of future shortages driving already surging inflation. Regions hit by the worst winter storms in 50 years provide the bulk of China's winter fruit and vegetable production. Along with crops, fish and poultry farms have also been hard hit, and much industrial production is at a standstill. Transport delays have already driven up vegetable prices nationwide, with those in the hardest hit areas more than doubling. Wholesalers in Beijing were quoted as saying that only about 20 percent of the usual supplies of fresh vegetables were reaching the city. Chinese cuisine places an emphasis on fresh produce, much of which is now grown in plastic-sheeted greenhouses that have buckled and collapsed under the snow. I suspect transport delays are more related to the Party's attempts to freeze fuel prices than to the weather. This year I tried one of those greenhouses in OH, sure enough, it collapsed in the first snowfall. China seems exceptionally unprepared for this winter. They may have to (horrors) eat canned food. |
| Posted by:Anguper Hupomosing9418 |
| #2 This is a fun article, but is it really WoT-related? |
| Posted by: gromky 2008-01-31 18:35 |
| #1 Okay, men, break out the patio heaters! And ban Al Gore from China! |
| Posted by: tu3031 2008-01-31 16:56 |