Durian season but no crowd

SEGAMAT: Tighter purse strings and concerns over the spread of Covid-19 have made Jementah, a town located far west of Johor in the district of Segamat, a much quieter place this durian season.

In the past, the town known as one of the producers of top quality durian in Johor, usually welcomed throngs of durian lovers, especially during weekends and public holidays.

Shamsul Ahmad, 54, who has been selling durian here for more than 10 years, said sales were slow after the government restricted interstate travel during the movement control order (MCO).

“My business dropped significantly, by more than half, due to the pandemic.

“Although people are allowed to travel more freely now, they are watching their spending, so it is still affecting my sales.”

He said many of his customers used to travel all the way from the east coast states in search of D13 and D101 fruits, which were said to have a creamier texture and rich colour.

He noted that although sales picked up over the Hari Raya Haji weekend, it was still a far cry from the revenue before where he could sell up to 11 tonnes of Musang King per day.

“I was happy to see my regular customers from Kuala Lumpur and Johor Baru in Segamat for the festive season.

“I managed to sell about three tonnes of Musang King, ” he said.

Jementah Farmers Cooperative chairman Wong Keat Soon said that due to border restrictions, Singaporean tourists were unable to visit Segamat to sample the fresh durian.

“Previously, large groups from Singapore would come here often specifically for our top crop of durian, ” he said.

While peak durian season usually falls in June, he lamented that durian harvest had been affected by unfavourable weather conditions which caused the trees to bear fewer fruits.

“We had no choice but to turn away groups from Johor Baru and Seremban despite the government allowing domestic travel, because the quality of fruits was not up to par.

“Our cooperative insists on only offering the best quality durian so as to not short-change and disappoint our customers, ” Wong explained.

On the other hand, durian farmer Eddie Heng, 48, who supplies the fruit to export companies, said sales had been brisk as the overseas market was still quite strong.

“There is still a steady demand for durian, especially frozen ones in markets such as China, Vietnam and Hong Kong, so my sales are not affected by the MCO, ” he revealed.

He said the current market price for Musang King was between RM40 and RM60 per kilogramme depending on the grade, while other popular offerings such as D13 are priced from RM20 to RM25 per kilogramme and kampung durian priced from RM10 to RM12 per kilogramme.

Heng said the unpredictable weather conditions might cause the durian season to be prolonged until December, from the usual June to September period.

“If it is extended, it will be good news for durian lovers who get to enjoy the fruits until the end of the year, but this all depends on the weather to determine the quality and quantity of the durian, ” he said.