CATDOLL : CATDOLL: The price of crayfish drops below 10 yuan per catty during the peak season. In which areas can you buy such cheap crayfish?

Barbecue, beer, and crayfish are known as the "three musketeers of midnight snacks". As the weather gets hotter, it's time to feast on crayfish. If you buy crayfish recently, you may find that the price of crayfish has dropped.

The price of crayfish has dropped significantly, with the price at the production area being less than 10 yuan per catty. "In early April, the nearby stores still sold 4-6 qian (unit of measurement, 1 qian = 5g) crayfish for 70 yuan per jin, but recently it has become 75 yuan per jin." A resident living in Fengtai District, Beijing said. In a supermarket in Fengtai District, Beijing, the price of fresh crayfish is 27.98 yuan per catty; in another supermarket nearby, fresh crayfish (single 20g-30g) is 28.8 yuan per catty, and fresh water crayfish (single 15-25g) is 25.98 yuan per catty. It has been more expensive in the past two days, but it was cheaper a few days ago."

The owner of a boutique seafood store in the seafood hall of Fengtai District told the reporter on the 10th that "fresh crayfish with a price of about 5 cents are now sold at 18 yuan per catty, and those with a price of about 9 cents are sold at 25 yuan per catty." The owner also said that since he sells at wholesale prices, it is cheaper than in supermarkets. Compared with these offline supermarkets, some fresh crayfish are sold at lower prices on e-commerce platforms. An e-commerce seller provided a price list for clear water shrimp in Jianli, Hubei on May 10. The price list shows that the boutique goods: small green (green shrimp) 2 to 3.8 cents is 11 yuan per catty; medium green 4 to 5.8 cents is 17 yuan per catty, and large green 6 cents or more is 25 yuan per catty. It was also noted that some online merchants whose shipping place is Jingzhou, Hubei, sell small-sized crayfish, and the price after coupons can even drop to less than 10 yuan per catty. On the 12th, "Hubei crayfish is less than 10 yuan per catty at the lowest" was also on Weibo Hot Search.

Hubei accounts for nearly half of the country's crayfish production, and Qianjiang, Hubei is known as the "hometown of crayfish for primary and secondary schools." Data released by the local crayfish vertical e-commerce trading platform show that since April, the wholesale prices of the two large and small crayfish species, green shrimp and red shrimp, have fallen significantly. After entering late April, the wholesale prices of the two species of crayfish (4-6 cents) fell below 20 yuan. Since May, they have continued to fluctuate at a low level.

Not only live crayfish, but also cooked crayfish are more affordable. On a certain fresh food e-commerce platform, spicy crayfish 4-6 yuan 620g is priced at 39.9 yuan, and buying two is only 72 yuan. The introduction page shows that the net weight of the shrimp is 500g.

E-commerce merchants are mainly concerned that now is the season when crayfish are put on the market in large quantities. "Due to weather reasons and other reasons, crayfish production has declined this year. Crayfish prices were cheaper at this time of year in previous years." The "2021 Analysis of the Lobster Industry Market in Primary and Secondary Schools" released by the China Aquatic Products Circulation and Processing Association also shows that for all primary school lobster transactions, the lowest transaction prices for various specifications are in May and June, which is related to the concentrated listing under the rice-shrimp farming model.

According to Zhang Yuanhua, deputy secretary-general of the China Aquatic Products Circulation and Processing Association, crayfish catering consumption also shows obvious cyclicality. January and February are the off-seasons each year. Starting from March, crayfish catering consumption shows explosive growth month-on-month, reaching a sales peak in May each year, and then begins to decline. April to August each year is the peak season for crayfish consumption.

Judging from the data, the supply and demand of crayfish have been booming recently, but the situation has changed this year. Jiangsu Lingjiatang Market Information Center recently posted that aquatic products have high requirements for freshness, transportation is not smooth under the epidemic, and the distribution of restaurants and other markets has weakened, so there are often large-scale sales, and prices often rise today and fall tomorrow. This is also the case with crayfish, which is currently in the peak season.

The owner of the seafood store said, "Due to the outbreak in Beijing, the sales volume of the store has declined. The market operation is not very good now. We can only do promotions. The profit is very thin, only 5%."

A vast market for crayfish is opening up

The "Report on the Development of Crayfish Industry in Primary and Secondary Schools (2021)" (hereinafter referred to as the "Report") released by the Chinese Society of Fisheries and the China Aquatic Products Circulation and Processing Association shows that in 2020, the total area of ​​lobster farming in primary schools reached 21.8463 million mu, and the total production reached 2.3937 million tons. The total area of ​​crayfish farming continued to grow from 2015 to 2020.

Under the influence of the epidemic and seasonal surplus, solving the problem of stable supply of aquatic products in the market and the pressure on aquatic products in ponds has become a top priority. In this regard, in addition to mentioning that all regions should scientifically and rationally plan the scale of breeding and regional layout, innovate breeding models, extend the market cycle of crayfish, and improve comprehensive benefits, the "Report" also pointed out that it is necessary to deepen the development of the crayfish processing industry, increase the construction of crayfish live storage bases, and make processing enterprises the "regulator" and "stabilizer" of the development of the crayfish industry.

In recent years, the consumption scenarios of crayfish have been continuously expanded. Seasoned crayfish products have entered fast food, Chinese food and late-night snack shops in large quantities and have become a popular dish in the shops. At the same time, crayfish has been combined with other categories of products to derive various innovative products, such as shrimp burgers, shrimp pizza, crayfish hot pot, shrimp tail rice, etc.

Crayfish are also frequently seen in the recently popular "prepared dishes". According to HEMA data, the sales volume of pre-prepared dishes on May 1 increased by 500% month-on-month, and the "top-tier" crayfish increased by more than 3 times. The wide application of the product has opened up a broad market space for the long-term development of crayfish. With offline sales being hindered today, crayfish are also constantly expanding their sales channels. In the live broadcast rooms of major e-commerce companies, crayfish wholesalers, seafood stores, and crayfish pre-prepared dish companies have all started to bring goods.

Have you bought crayfish recently? Is the price cheaper? (End)

In a supermarket, the price of live crayfish is 27.98 yuan per catty; in another supermarket nearby, live crayfish (20g-30g per piece) is 28.8 yuan per catty, and live clear-water crayfish (15-25g per piece) is 25.98 yuan per catty. The owner of a boutique seafood store said, "Fresh crayfish that cost about 5 cents are now sold for 18 yuan per catty, and those that cost about 9 cents are sold for 25 yuan per catty." The owner also said that since he sells at wholesale prices, it is cheaper than in supermarkets.

During the peak season, the price of crayfish drops below 10 yuan per catty. In which areas can you buy such cheap crayfish?

1. As the weather gets hotter, crayfish farming and production

The main reason is that it is now the season when crayfish are put on the market in large quantities. "Due to weather reasons and other reasons, the production of crayfish has decreased this year. The price of crayfish was cheaper at this time of year in previous years." The "2021 China Crayfish Industry Market Analysis" released by the China Aquatic Products Circulation and Processing Association also shows that the national crayfish transactions, the lowest transaction prices of various specifications are in May and June, which is related to the concentrated listing under the rice-shrimp farming model.

2. Provinces rich in crayfish

According to statistics, in 2017, there were 19 provinces in China that reported crayfish farming production, namely Hubei, Anhui, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Henan, Sichuan, Shandong, Zhejiang, Chongqing, Yunnan, Guangdong, Guangxi, Fujian, Guizhou, Shanghai, Ningxia, Xinjiang, and Hebei. The total production of crayfish farming in China was 1.1297 million tons, of which Hubei Province produced 631,600 tons, Anhui Province produced 137,700 tons, Hunan Province produced 135,700 tons, Jiangsu Province produced 115,400 tons, and Jiangxi Province produced 74,400 tons. The total production of crayfish farming in the above five provinces was 1.0948 million tons, accounting for 96.91% of the national total production, of which Hubei Province had the largest production, accounting for 55.91% of the national total.

3. Hunan crayfish

Hunan crayfish is not only famous, but also delicious, with thick juice and delicious meat! There are many flavors, such as garlic flavor and flavored shrimp. It is very delicately cooked. I brought my friends to eat it and they were all very satisfied. Moreover, it is easy to find Hunan crayfish. It is almost the season for eating crayfish. You can go to any restaurant and it is delicious.

Postscript: Actually, regarding crayfish, Xuyi crayfish is the most famous. It even held an international lobster festival. I went there to try it and found it was indeed worthy of its reputation. The shrimp meat was very soft, full of texture, and had a lot of roe. If you have the opportunity to go to Xuyi, you must try the crayfish with thirteen flavors, which can best bring out the deliciousness of the crayfish.

Hubei accounts for nearly half of the country's crayfish production, and Qianjiang, Hubei is known as the "hometown of crayfish in China." Data released by the local crayfish vertical e-commerce trading platform show that since April, the wholesale prices of the two large crayfish species, green shrimp and red shrimp, have fallen significantly. After entering late April, the wholesale prices of the two species of crayfish (4-6 cents) fell below 20 yuan. Since May, they have continued to fluctuate at a low level.

Not only live crayfish, but also cooked crayfish are more affordable. On a certain fresh food e-commerce platform, spicy crayfish 4-6 yuan 620g is priced at 39.9 yuan, and buying two is only 72 yuan. The introduction page shows that the net weight of the shrimp is 500g.

You can buy it at the local market in the morning, or at the vegetable market, or at some roadside stalls. Crayfish are very cheap in these places, especially in some coastal areas, such as Qingdao, Zhuhai, Xiamen, Hainan and other places.

In the central China, northeast China, south China, Guangzhou, Guangdong and coastal areas, you can often buy cheap products at reduced prices.