China Also Experiences 'Salt Hoarding' Amid Japan's Contaminated Water Discharge... "Do Not Buy Blindly"

Salt Sold Out Across Chinese Shopping Malls Due to Hoarding
China Salt Industry Group Advises "Do Not Buy Blindly"

On the 24th, as Japan began discharging contaminated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant into the ocean, a salt hoarding phenomenon has also emerged in China.

[Photo by Pixabay]

According to a report by Yonhap News on the day, salt was sold out across various Chinese online shopping malls where food products such as Meitan and Hema can be purchased. Along with this, the stock prices of salt-related companies in China, such as the Jiangyan Group, surged sharply, hitting the upper limit.

Local Chinese media, including the Beijing Daily, pointed out that this phenomenon arose due to the spread of salt hoarding information in some WeChat (China's version of KakaoTalk) chat rooms, which fueled anxiety.

This is similar to the 'sun-dried salt hoarding' phenomenon that occurred domestically in June. When news broke that Japan planned to discharge contaminated water into the ocean, domestic orders for sun-dried salt surged, and prices more than doubled.

At that time, an industry insider analyzed, "As the Fukushima contaminated water discharge approaches, anxiety among consumers seems to be causing the salt hoarding phenomenon."

Salt has sold out in various Chinese online shopping malls.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

According to the Beijing Daily, China Salt Industry Group, a state-owned enterprise in the Chinese salt industry, is currently working overtime due to the flood of orders.

In a statement, China Salt Industry Group said, "Our annual salt production capacity exceeds 10 million tons, of which sea salt accounts for 1%. It will not be significantly affected by nuclear contamination."

They added, "The company's salt inventory is sufficient to fully meet market demand, and we are closely connected with major supermarket markets to do our best to ensure salt supply. Consumers should consume reasonably and not purchase blindly."

Earlier in June, a salt hoarding phenomenon also appeared domestically as the contaminated water discharge issue became more visible.