Prices of rice, vegetables, and fish have started to rise this month with the early start of the rainy season.

At the Kamuning market in Quezon City, for instance, rice prices had an increase of P1 per kilo, with well-milled rice at P35, sinandomeng at P32, and the R-64 variety at P37.

Aside from rice, the early rains have also caused a spike in vegetable prices, particularly those that came from Baguio as these are harder to transport during bad weather.

Vendors at the Kamuning market said Baguio beans are now priced P60 per kilo from P50, while Baguio pechay (Chinese cabbage) costs P50 from P35. Other vegetables also had an increase in prices such as carrots (P60 from P45), ampalaya or bitter melon (P70 from P60), and eggplants (P45 from P35).

Fish prices, meanwhile, also went up between P10 and P50, with tilapia now priced at the Kamuning market at P90 from P80, galunggong (hard-tail mackerel) at P120 from P80, tulingan (skipback tuna) at P120 from P80, bisugo (threadfin bream) at P130 from P100, dalagang bukid (yellow tail fusilier) at P140 from P100, and hasa-hasa (short-bodied mackerel) at P140 to P150 from P100.

The rainy season usually makes it harder for farmers to plant and transport crops and vegetables. It also makes it more dangerous for fishermen to look for fish and other types of seafood. This affects the supply of the said products, causing wholesalers to increase prices.

The country's weather bureau PAGASA (Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration) said last week that the rainy season came in early April with the passage of tropical cyclones Crising, Dante, and Emong.

Normally, PAGASA said the rainy season starts during the second half of May.

Chicken prices down, pork prices unchanged

Despite this, vendors at the Kamuning market said chicken prices went down to P125 from P130, citing an increase in supply. Pork prices, on the other hand, remain unchanged.

Last month, Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap said pork prices were slashed by as much as P10 per kilo in most supermarkets as consumers begin to think twice about buying pork, following reports of the H1N1 virus (swine flu) recently discovered in Mexico.

However, Yap assured the public that the virus is not transmitted through eating pork, citing reports from the Animal World Health Organization. Rather, it is passed on from pig to human (or human to human) via aerial droplets.  With a report from Zen Hernandez, ABS-CBN News