Vegetable prices have plummeted in Japan. Wholesale prices in Tokyo in mid-December were 20 percent lower than in previous years (the average of the past five years) and the lowest in 11 years. Japan also initiated emergency supply and demand adjustment measures in December after a 13-year hiatus due to falling prices. On the one hand, the growth of leafy vegetables and other vegetables accelerated due to the warm winter, and on the other hand, demand for food and lodging facilities evaporated due to the rebound of the Shinkansen epidemic. As the weather continued to warm up, household demand for hot pots weakened.

In mid-December, the overall average price of domestic Japanese vegetables at four wholesale markets in Tokyo was 197 yen (about 12.4 yuan) per kilogram, down 20 percent from previous years. Up 18 percent year-on-year. in mid-December, which is the lowest level since 2009, leafy vegetables price reductions are more prominent. From the weekly market of Tokyo Central Wholesale Market, the wholesale price of cabbage in the second week of December (11th to 17th) was 15 kilograms of 346 yen (about RMB 23.0), down 30 percent compared with the same period last year, while the wholesale price of radish was 10 kilograms of 432 yen (about RMB 27.3), a drop of 40 percent compared with the same period last year. Lettuce also fell 50 percent.

Continuous rainfall will be reduced in the fall as no typhoons have made landfall this year. Temperatures are higher than in previous years, and leafy vegetables are growing rapidly. The main production areas in Japan such as Ibaraki and Chiba are well supplied. Prices of Chinese vegetables in Japan have been rising due to the new coronavirus pneumonia affecting the prices of Chinese vegetables in Japan. Japan imported 1.86 million tons of fresh and frozen vegetables in 2019, about half of which were produced in China. Although Chinese vegetables are less common on Japanese supermarket shelves, they are cheaper and their quality is improving compared with domestic vegetables.

The Japanese restaurant industry has long used Chinese vegetables. Ninety percent of garlic and onions imported from Japan come from China, but imports have begun to decline. Chinese processing plants engaged in cleaning and peeling have delayed resuming work after the Lunar New Year holiday due to travel restrictions and other reasons. Since mid-February, garlic imports by some companies have dropped from half the usual amount to mid-February levels. Peeled onions purchased from China reached about 120 yen per kilogram, 30 percent higher than before the Chinese New Year. Ginger produced in China, which accounts for most of Japan's imports, has seen the average wholesale price in Tokyo rise by about 5 percent.