China Customs To Inspect Indonesian Durian Orchards and Packing Facilities in March

In the wake of the temporary disruption to durian exports from Thailand and Vietnam to China due to issues with auramine O dye contamination, Liferdi Lukman, director of fruit and floriculture at Indonesia’s Ministry of Agriculture, noted that this presents a prime opportunity for Indonesia to directly export its own durians to China. Negotiations are currently underway, with an agreement on frozen durian exports expected to be finalized next month.

According to a news report from Bali Post, Sahat Manaor Panggabean, head of the Indonesian Quarantine Agency, recently announced that Indonesia is ready to directly export durians to China. At a local meeting, he said that the Indonesian government had initiated trade cooperation with China in 2023, focusing on promoting the export of four agricultural products, namely, coconuts, durians, fishmeal and bird’s nests.

He also revealed that the draft protocol for Indonesia’s durian exports to China had been completed, with the next step being the signing process. An inspection team from China’s General Administration of Customs is scheduled to visit packaging facilities and durian orchards in Central Sulawesi province from March 9 to 14.

According to data from the provincial government, the registered durian cultivation area in the province currently spans approximately 3,056 hectares across five regencies, namely, Parigi Moutong (1,462 hectares), Poso (1,162 hectares), Sigi (212 hectares), Donggala (151 hectares) and Tolitoli (70 hectares). Among these five regencies, three — Parigi Moutong, Poso and Sigi — have already declared their readiness to export durians to China.

In 2023, Indonesia’s durian production reached 1.83 million metric tons. However, exporting fresh durians remains challenging on account of Indonesia’s distance from China. With a shelf life of only five days, fresh Indonesian durians face stiff competition from countries such as Thailand and Vietnam, which are geographically closer to China and already have well-established procedures for exporting durians to China. Indonesia still needs to develop its infrastructure and improve storage methods to enhance its export competitiveness.

Image: Pixabay

This article was translated from Chinese. Read the original article.