In recent days, some residents of Hangzhou found a pile of dead crabs at their doorstep, sparking curiosity and speculation. Some believed the crabs were discarded by local crab farmers, but in reality, such dead crabs are commonly seen in trash bins across the city's aquatic markets. This unusual sight signals a troubling trend in the crab market—many crab sellers have suffered significant losses this year.
Since the start of the New Year, crab prices in the Suzhou-Hangzhou region have been on a steady decline. On the Hangzhou wholesale market, two large crabs couldn’t even break 30 yuan per kilogram. A wholesaler from the Hangzhou Agricultural Capital Market admitted that the thought of so many crabs dying in the lake keeps her up at night.
Since the second half of last year, an increasing number of aquaculture producers in Hangzhou have entered the crab farming business. However, due to fierce competition, no one openly shared how much they had stocked. “I didn’t realize how many crabs others had until just before the Spring Festival,†said Jiang Bo, a local crab seller. “By then, I learned that everyone had a lot. With the warm weather, the crabs were dying and getting injured. Many people rushed to sell them.â€
Jiang’s fears came true. Everyone tried to outsmart each other, assuming others wouldn’t have too many crabs, leading to an oversupply in the market. Before the Spring Festival, the price of three male crabs and two female crabs dropped to just 27 yuan per kilogram, while two male and two female crabs were sold for only 28 yuan per kilogram.
“Sales were good in the days leading up to the holiday, but profits were slim,†Jiang said. “Many of the crabs we sold were already dead or damaged, and the cost of raising them had gone up significantly. As a result, we faced huge losses.â€
During the first month of the year, several colleagues met and confirmed that many crab sellers were losing money. The river market owner noted that everyone had been quite quiet about their losses this year. “This is a disaster caused by the warm weather,†said a market official from Omi (Nongdu) in Hangzhou. “We estimate that crab sellers have lost nearly 89% of their income this year.â€
According to market staff, crab lovers will also suffer this year. “Crabs are like stocks—they’re very risky,†the staff member explained. “The unusually warm winter and frequent fog have been deadly for crabs. The costs have risen sharply, and during the Chinese New Year period, the price of three male and two female crabs was only 60 yuan per kilogram. Many people ended up with heavy losses.â€
However, due to the high death rate of crabs, operators have increased their shipments, and the current supply of hairy crabs has started to decrease. In the past two days, prices have begun to rise again. The author observed that many crab boxes on the market today are empty, and the price of two male and two female crabs has climbed to 36 yuan/kg and 37 yuan/kg respectively. Despite this, the river market owner remains uncertain about the future of the crab market.
She believes that if some people hold back their crabs for long and the supply becomes low, prices could surge again. “Right now, the crab market feels like watching flowers through fog—it’s unclear what will happen next,†she said.
The high mortality rate of crabs is a direct consequence of the warm weather. “When it’s hot, crabs tend to move around a lot and die easily,†said Wang Wang, a crab seller at a farmers’ market. “When it’s cold, they stay still and don’t die as quickly.â€
It’s also worth noting that in November last year, the autumn winds never really arrived, and the crabs were in poor condition with a bland taste. This affected consumer interest and further hurt sales.
“Honestly, this business depends a lot on luck,†said Wang boss reluctantly. “The market changes every year, and there are always unpredictable factors.â€
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