Thailand Exports 480,000 Tons of Durians to China in First 5 Months of 2023

Despite the impact of adverse weather conditions on Thailand’s durian production this year, sales of the fruit from the eastern part of the country have still reached a record high, laying a solid foundation for durians from southern Thailand to take over. The export window for durians from southern Thailand lasts from mid-June through October.

On June 10, the 14 provinces of southern Thailand simultaneously began their durian harvests. It is forecast that these provinces will produce a total of 670,000 metric tons of durians this year, with Chumphon province alone accounting for approximately half of the total output. China is the most important export market for Chumphon durians.

Nuttakrit Oranhirunrak, vice president of the Thai-Chinese Agribusiness Association in Chanthaburi province, stated that the export volume of Thai durians to China in 2023 is likely to exceed the figures in previous years. As of June 10, Thailand had exported around 33,000 containers of durians to China, far surpassing the 15,000 containers from three years ago. However, adverse weather conditions in eastern Thailand affected the shape of many durians. If it were not for the bad weather, the total export volume to China would have been approximately 35,000–40,000 containers.

In terms of price, the average price of durians from eastern Thailand rose to 130 Thai baht ($3.73) per kilogram this year, hitting a historical high. Kradumtong durians were priced as high as 300 baht ($8.61) per kilogram, while prices of Monthong and Phuang Mani durians reached 250 baht ($7.18) per kilogram.

A local durian exporter reported that three years ago durians were priced at only 90 baht ($2.58) per kilogram, but this year the average price started at 100 baht ($2.87) per kilogram and even skyrocketed to 200 baht ($5.74) per kilogram in May. The exporter said that they hope the government can provide greater assistance in terms of logistics and marketing during next year’s durian harvesting season, including setting a maximum limit on shipping prices.

Data from Thailand’s Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives show that Thailand exported 480,000 metric tons of durians worth 63 billion baht ($1.81 billion) to China in the first five months of 2023. The total fruit export target set by the Thai Ministry of Commerce for this year is 4.44 million metric tons, with a durian export target of 100 billion baht ($2.88 billion). Based on the current export data, it seems likely that Thai durians will surpass this target before the end of the year.

Image: Pixabay

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