Magong City: Several farming regions around Taiwan have recently held giant cabbage competitions, as the beloved crop enters its peak harvest season ahead of the Lunar New Year. On Sunday, 32 cabbage growers took part in a competition in Penghu's Magong City hosted by the local government, which handed out NT$5,000 (US$152) and NT$2,000 awards, respectively, for the largest and "prettiest" cabbages.

According to Focus Taiwan, Yeh Hsing-kuo, a 51-year-old farmer from Penghu's Wukan Village, took home the largest cabbage prize for the fourth consecutive year with a cabbage weighing 19.1 catties (11.46 kilograms). Despite the smaller and later harvest this year due to typhoons that hit Penghu last summer and fall, the quality of the cabbages is superior to last year, Yeh noted.

In a separate event organized by the Chiayi County Farmers' Association on Friday, Budai Township farmer Chiu Shu-hsuan won the top prize for a cabbage weighing an impressive 33.91 catties (20.3 kg).

The Agriculture and Food Agency reports that Taiwanese cabbages from low-elevation regions, mainly Yunlin and Changhua, are typically harvested from October through May each year. Those from high-elevation growing areas, such as Yilan, Nantou, and Taichung, are harvested over the summer. As the current harvest has reached its peak season, the average price of cabbage has significantly decreased from NT$54.2 per kg in early December to below NT$15 on Sunday, according to the agency's vegetable wholesale price tracking website.