Durian exporters and farmers in Malaysia say that durian season this year might last until November.
According to a report on Shin Min Daily News, this is due to the changing climate causing durian trees to flower irregularly.
As such, farmers are expecting an overabundance of supply while demand from neighbouring countries dwindles.
As the weather changes and the climate becomes more unpredictable, durian plantations in Muar, Malaysia, are experiencing irregular flowering timings.
This means that they no longer have a standardised harvest season, which may result in a continuous supply of durian in the country.
Durian farmers in Muar revealed that this season’s durians have only been on shelves for two weeks. They estimate that most of the harvest will occur after next week.
Despite that, wholesale prices of Mao Shan Wang durians have dipped to less than RM40 (S$11.80). The purchase price of less popular types of durians has also dropped from RM20 to RM15 (S$5.90 to S$4.40).
This means that farmers are barely making enough profits to cover their costs.
Other durian sellers in Muar also pointed out that, due to the poor economy, people’s spending power has decreased.
On top of that, they are not able to export this season’s harvest to China. This has led to an overabundance of supply in Malaysia, causing local prices to drop to a record low.
To promote sales, some sellers have been putting smaller types of durian together and selling them in baskets for cheap. These durians go for about RM50 (S$14.80) per 10 kilograms.
Source: Shin Min Daily News
While they still export their durians to neighbouring Singapore and Indonesia, sellers have also noticed that the number of durians these countries import has fallen as well.
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Featured image adapted from Shin Min Daily News and YouTube. Right image for illustration purposes only.
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