Fresh Malaysian Durians Make China Debut

The inaugural shipments of fresh Malaysian durians have now started arriving in China, with a total of 40 metric tons from nine Malaysian exporters currently being sent by air in three batches. These first shipments include 10 varieties, such as Sultan King (D24), Musang King (D197), Black Thorn (D200) and red-fleshed durians (D101).

The first batch, consisting of 1,500 cartons totaling 15 metric tons, was sent on Aug. 24 and arrived in Zhengzhou, the capital city of Henan province, at 8 p.m. on Aug. 25. The second batch, weighing 20 metric tons, departed on Aug. 25 and landed at Shenzhen Bao’an International Airport in the early hours of Aug. 26. After clearing customs, the fresh durians were quickly distributed to major cities across China within 24 hours via cold chain logistics using trains, trucks and airplanes. At the time of writing, the third batch was also scheduled to depart soon.

As the fresh Malaysian durians, which gained market access in June, start to reach Chinese consumers, demand continues to rise, prompting Indonesia to accelerate export negotiations for its own durians. According to a news report by the Jakarta Globe, Indonesia’s Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi revealed that the country is aiming to expedite the completion of discussions establishing the protocols for exporting frozen durians and coconuts to China.

Indonesia began seeking China market access for its durians in 2020 and is still in the protocol negotiation phase. In 2023, Indonesia’s durian production reportedly reached 1.85 million metric tons, with East Java being the highest-producing region, accounting for over 480,000 metric tons.

Image: Jing Zang

This article was based on a Chinese article. Read the original article.