It seems like Malaysian durian fans will have to deal with an expected 100 per cent price increase during this year’s durian season. Deputy Agriculture and Food Industry Minister I Datuk Seri Ahmad Hamzah said the price hike was due to a 50 percent drop in durian production due to weather conditions.
Malaymail.com quoted him as saying: “We believe that the rainy season at the end of March to April has impacted the pollination of durian, which impacts the number of fruits. We expect this factor will result in a drop of 50 percent in total production in some states.” Besides weather, increased fertiliser and labor costs have also affected durian production.
Durian supply down by nearly 60 percent
The durian supply has gone down by nearly 60% because of factors like bad weather and pests while prices are set to increase by 10% this year, says a durian farmers’ group. Save Musang King Alliance (Samka) president Wilson Chang said the supply issues also meant that most durian farmers did not dare to export the fruit overseas.
“This durian season has been unstable and the fruits are not as nice. There’s no other alternative to stop the pests. Some of the durian trees might die. It could take one or two years to nurse them back to health,” he said.
Source: dailyexpress.com.my