SOME vans instituted by the government to sell cheaper vegetables in communities were attacked by peddlers or supermarkets in business disputes.

    At an intersection near Huijia Shopping Center in Nanwan Subdistrict, Longgang District, two employees of Shenzhen Central Kitchen Logistics Co., the operator of the service, were beaten by several men Saturday. They were forced to leave the area after one employee was slapped, according to a Southern Metropolis Daily report yesterday.

    “It is ridiculous. We can’t afford the high price of vegetables in supermarkets and now we had a chance to buy cheaper vegetables, but someone has driven them away,” vegetable buyers complained.

    According to assistant manager Liu of the logistics company, it was the second attack since the launch of the service at the end of September.

    Chairman of the Huijia Shopping Center surnamed Wang confirmed the attack.

    “It is illegal but reasonable to slap the van employees because the vans have taken our business. He is lucky he didn’t die,” said Wang.

    Because the logistics company had government subsidies, vegetable prices were generally cheaper by 20-30 percent compared with supermarkets or wet markets.

    “They sell radishes for 3 yuan (US$0.47) per kilogram, but our purchase price is much higher than that. How can we survive,” Wang said.

    “We expected the van service could be disrupted by supermarkets or peddlers because of the low prices. We were warned against going to places near supermarkets when the service was initiated,” Liu said.

    According to the regulation, vans should operate more than 100 meters from supermarkets. The van that was attacked was at least 150 meters from the supermarket.

    Van sales had gained in popularity since it was launched three weeks ago. The city government had decided to put 300 vans on the road selling cheaper vegetables at 900 stalls in city communities to help residents offset costs caused by the price hikes.

    (Han Ximin)