KUALA LUMPUR: Fresh durians worth RM24.84mil were exported to China within four months, says Deputy Agriculture and Food Security Minister Datuk Arthur Joseph Kurup.
He said the fresh durians, weighing 413.61 metric tonnes, were exported from August to December last year.
Malaysia’s current durian production is insufficient to meet the export market demand, as the Chinese fresh durian market was valued at RM32bil in 2023, he said.
“The supply of fresh durians is limited to the harvesting seasons, usually twice a year,” he said.
Kurup said Malaysian durians are currently available in 16 regions in China including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Tianjin and Chengdu.
Malaysia’s agriculture office in Beijing is promoting the benefits of the Malaysian durian to Chinese consumers, he said.
“The office has found through a survey that fresh Malaysian durians are well received by the Chinese market and regarded as premium,” he told Chow Yu Hui (PH-Raub) at the Dewan Rakyat yesterday.
Kurup said the Malaysian durian must be exported in refrigerated condition, adding that they can only be kept for three to four days for freshness.
“This leads to higher shipping costs,” he said.
For comparison, he said durians from Vietnam or Thailand are harvested before ripening and have a shelf life of up to 25 days.
To a supplementary question from Chow on whether the government will provide land titles for durian farmers in Raub, Pahang, Kurup explained that the authority to grant land titles lies with the state.
“To assist durian growers in the state of Pahang, the Department of Agriculture provides designated areas within the Permanent Food Production Park for durian cultivation,” he said.
Kurup also said the ministry has provided incentives for durian cultivation under the Long-Term Fruit Crop Development Project, where 4,762 farmers have benefited and received support such as farm infrastructure development, agricultural expertise and farming equipment.
“The ministry offers a tax incentive for companies and investors with upstream agro-food sector projects.
“This tax incentive allows companies to enjoy a 100% business income tax exemption for up to 10 years and income tax deductions based on qualifying capital expenditure,” he said.
