When I first came to the United States 20 years ago, everything seemed very expensive to me, almost astronomical—especially vegetables. But over the years, the cost of basic foods has not risen much in the United States, whereas almost everything in China has become much more expensive, even though people’s incomes are much lower.
My friends in Guangdong recently told me that vegetables there are far more expensive than in the U.S.—I was shocked. Some Internet users say that prices were only temporarily high during the Chinese New Year festival, and that is was to compensate farmers who had to work during that time. However, prices did not come down after the New Year. Even after the winter storms passed and the weather turned warmer, vegetable and pork prices remained high in March and continued going up at an alarming rate. The high price of groceries in China today is truly shocking.
Apples
In the 1990s, Red Delicious apples in a U.S. supermarket were 99 cents a pound, roughly equivalent to 9 yuan. Although I had a monthly stipend of $2,000 at the time and could afford to buy the apples, I did think they were expensive. At that time, apples in China were only one tenth of what they cost in the U.S.
Twenty years later, the price of Red Delicious apple in the U.S. is around $1.29 per pound. Percentage-wise, this price increase is much less than the average income increase. Moreover, supermarkets always have specials, and the price frequently drops to 99 cents. At the current conversion rate, it is about seven yuan a pound, and this price is similar to the cost of Red Delicious apples in China today.
This is a typical example of rising costs in China, which have increased by several hundred percent, with some items going up more than one thousand percent.
Vegetables, Meat, and More
