When I tapped and trawled some apps for grocery shopping last week, I was caught by surprise that spinach, a green leafy vegetable typically found on most dining tables, was retailing at about 32 yuan ($5) per kilogram.Unbelievable as it may sound, spinach costs more than pork!

Recent extreme weather in some regions, COVID-19 resurgence across many provinces and the energy crunch, are believed to have sent vegetable prices soaring in China.

Although pork prices have been falling, which somewhat softening the impact of costlier vegetables, concerns over the rising risk of inflation have been growing. According to data from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, vegetable prices rose nationwide in October by 16 percent month-on-month. The good news is, prices have came down a bit in the past few days.

The authorities is trying to calm the public by vowing to guarantee supplies of meat, eggs and milk this year, said an official with the ministry, as production of meat and milk is expected to reach a high to meet the need during the New Year and Spring Festival holidays.

China’s factory-gate inflation hit a record high in September, in contrast to the country's mild consumer inflation. The distortion of high producer prices and falling consumer prices could put policymakers in a difficult situation as high factory inflation could constrain the government from using strong stimulus policies to spur growth and boost domestic demand. Some economists also saw China's mild consumer inflation as a sign of a slow recovery of domestic demand, which needs additional policy support.