The Peanut Turmoil 01"Someone deliberately stirs up peanut turmoil, farm-gate prices plummet, the Council of Agriculture buys at a guaranteed price of 67 yuan per kg, and urges farmers not to sell off their crops
A single rumor actually sent local peanut prices plummeting! A photo circulating online of a tariff quota "royalty" award notice for peanuts for next year (2020) was hyped by someone with ulterior motives as the "imported peanut price," and many brokers used it to drive down their purchase prices, causing farm-gate peanut prices to fall sharply. In early November the "farm-gate negotiated price" was about 78 yuan per kg, but by mid-November it had fallen to 60 yuan per kg. As for the "national market auction price," today (the 22nd) it also dropped to 43 yuan per kg, and peanut farmers are lamenting bitterly.
Council of Agriculture Minister Chen Chi-chung has spent days personally on the front line battling the "peanut turmoil," announcing that the government will buy at 40 yuan per Taiwanese catty (67 yuan per kg), and matching processing plants to launch purchase-storage and processing measures, hoping to stabilize farm-gate peanut prices as soon as possible. Those currently helping with the purchases include the Huwei Farmers' Association, the Beigang Farmers' Association, the Yuanchang Farmers' Association and the Lunbei Farmers' Association. Farmers in other production areas can contact units such as the Citong Cooperative Farm, the Dongshi Coarse Grains Production Cooperative and the Zimao Production Cooperative across regions. Chen Chi-chung urged farmers not to panic and not to sell at a loss.
Fact check: the "31 yuan to 38 yuan" on the award notice circulating online refers to the tender price of the "import royalty," and still has to be added to the "import arrival price" and "tariff." The actual import cost of peanuts is 65-81 yuan per kg.
Yunlin County Magistrate Chang Li-shan shows the "award notice," and rumors spread everywhere, hitting peanut prices
The second crop of peanuts in China enters its harvest period from November. This year the second-crop area is initially estimated at 12,020 hectares, and some of the early-planted fields were affected by the 812 heavy rains, cutting overall output by 18% (estimated output 31,534 metric tons). Lower output means higher prices, and peanut prices since November this year have risen 20% to 40% compared with the same period last year.
However, many farmers have recently reported that peanut prices have plummeted this week, suddenly sliding from the national average price of 87.1 yuan (per kg) on the 18th, and they point the finger at a piece of "import news." It is understood that last week, when Yunlin County Magistrate Chang Li-shan was being questioned in the county council, she publicly showed an award notice and accused the Council of Agriculture of still opening peanut imports in November, hurting the local industry. The award notice was then misreported as an "import notice," and online rumors spread everywhere. Many brokers, upon receiving the news, developed expectant psychology and lowered their purchase prices or even refused to enter the market, damaging peanut buying sentiment and pushing prices down. Peanut farmers are lamenting bitterly.
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