Prices of vegetables and rice have been soaring in Japan due to unfavorable weather and rising production costs.

Prices of fresh vegetables in January climbed 36% year on year, with prices of cabbage and Chinese cabbage shooting up by about three and two times respectively, according to consumer price data released by the internal affairs ministry Friday.

Rice prices rose 70.9%, with the pace of increase marking a record high for the fourth straight month.

For prepared food, there have been moves to pass higher production costs on to retail prices, putting pressure on households.

The recent lack of rain is a factor behind the surge in vegetable prices, according to the ministry and other sources.

The pace of rise for Chinese cabbage accelerated from December's 55.7%, partly reflecting a surge in demand as a substitute for cabbage, whose prices remain elevated.

Rice prices have been on an uptrend since last summer, when they soared amid supply shortages.

The higher rice prices have led to markups of related products, with prices in January rising 9.2% for onigiri rice balls and 4.5% for sushi served at restaurants.

Earlier this month, the government decided to release some rice that had been stockpiled by the state to ease the distribution bottlenecks, a factor contributing to the spike in the prices of the staple food.

Koya Miyamae of SMBC Nikko Securities predicted that the rate of rice price growth will remain high as moves to pass on higher production costs continue.

Prices of food excluding fresh food in the first half of this year are expected to rise over 5% from a year before, pushed up by spikes in the prices of rice-based products, according to Miyamae.