Cheap hairy crabs turn the industry upside down
2012-9-9 | NEWSPAPER EDITION
Online stores are offering heavy discounts for hairy crabs ahead of two major holidays, upsetting traditional crab outlets and revealing industry kickbacks.
Nineteen types of hairy crabs are being presold at an 80 percent discount for group purchasers on Taobao.com.
More than 100,000 crabs have already been presold for about 15 million yuan (US$2.3 million).
The crabs will be delivered in late September from Yangcheng Lake in Suzhou, Jiangsu Province. The lake is known for its hairy crabs.
But the cheap crabs offered online this year have turned the market upside down, provoking complaints from traditional outlets.
Crab outlet operators based in Hangzhou, capital of Zhejiang Province, gathered at Yangcheng Lake in late August to complain to the Hairy Crab Industry Association about a disruption in market order caused by the low prices offered by online vendors.
Zhang Dehong, chairman of Yang Dehong, a well-known crab company, said the cost of his company's crabs is about 240 yuan per kilogram, considerably higher than the prices offered online.
An online vendor surnamed Wu said the low costs are the result of a bumper harvest.
One online crab vendor, who requested anonymity, said the low prices have served to expose kickbacks.
The expensive crabs means they are usually given as gifts from companies to clients, employees or even government officials.
However, when company employees are sent to buy the crabs, vendors often give them vouchers, discounts or even cash to convince them to make more expensive purchases, which are then charged to the company.
