PUTRAJAYA: Malaysia’s exports of frozen whole durians to China are expected to reach 1,000 metric tonnes every month, said the country’s Agriculture and Agro-based Ministry.
Malaysia marked its first export of frozen whole durians to China on Monday (Jun 17). Previously, the export agreement between the two countries only covered frozen durian pulp and paste.
Last year, Malaysia's total durian export to China stood at RM9.44 million (US$2.26 million) or 235.62 metric tonnes.
With frozen whole durians being given the green light, Malaysia expects these exports to contribute nearly RM500 million to the country's total annual export value.
Five companies have been given approval to export the fruit to China.
“We hope that more companies will be able to get the permission to export the fruit soon,” said minister Salahuddin Ayub.
He added that Malaysia's production of durians would be enough to meet demand both locally and around the world, including China.
Total durian production rose to 341,000 metric tonnes last year from 211,000 metric tonnes in 2017. It is expected to keep increasing in future, said the minister, especially for premium variants such as Musang King and Black Thorn.
“Negotiations with China in the past few years have resulted in the opening of more commercial durian farms, thus giving a boost to production,” he explained.