Dak Lak strives to export the first frozen durian to China in 2024

Ms. Ngo Thi Minh Trinh - Vice Chairman of the People's Committee of Krong Pak district - with festival ambassadors and delegates chairing the press conference - Photo: TRUNG TAN

On the morning of August 22, the People's Committee of Krong Pak district held a press conference to inform about the second durian festival (taking place from August 31 to September 2) and said that it is striving to have the first shipment of frozen durian exported to China.

Many opportunities from frozen durian

Regarding preparations for exporting frozen durian, after the protocol was signed between Vietnam and China, Mr. Nguyen Van Ha - Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Dak Lak - said he was waiting for instructions from the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.

Dak Lak aims for quality durian industry and ensures food safety - Photo: TRUNG TAN

According to Mr. Ha, China is still a large market for agricultural products in general and durian in particular. Last year, there was a protocol for official durian (fresh fruit) export, creating favorable conditions for this industry.

Recently, during the visit and work of General Secretary and President To Lam, the two sides had an additional protocol on exporting frozen durian.

Exporting frozen durian is more advantageous because each durian only has about 30% of the flesh inside.

If exporting fresh fruit, the same weight will take up to 3 containers, but if exporting frozen fruit, only 1 container is needed because the skin is removed.

In addition, exporting frozen durian is not subject to time pressure, reduces costs, ensures quality and can be sold year-round.

"The department has approached businesses and is ready to invest in frozen warehouses, according to the standards and requirements of partners, to export frozen durian by 2025," said Mr. Ha.

Speaking more about this, Ms. Ngo Thi Minh Trinh said that after the protocol was issued, Krong Pak district worked with central and provincial agencies to learn about the process of exporting frozen durian.

"We are waiting for instructions to have frozen durian export shipments during this festival," Ms. Trinh hopes.

In 2023, Vietnam exported about 500,000 tons of durian, reaching a turnover of 2.3 billion USD, of which exports to China accounted for 90%.

Frozen durian is a new product with higher added value than fresh durian.

Frozen durian exports are expected to reach 400 - 500 million USD in 2024 and billions of USD by 2025.

Record-long dragon will appear at durian festival

To highlight the festival, Ms. Trinh said the district has completed a 120m long dragon and filed a request to set a record for the longest dragon in Vietnam.

The dragon will appear at the street festival, with 63 young people from 49 ethnic groups living in Dak Lak province participating in the parade.

This record-setting dragon will not only perform at the durian festival but will also appear at the 120th anniversary of Dak Lak province and many other local events.

The 120m dragon will parade at the 2nd durian festival - Photo: MT

In particular, the durian workshop will highlight the "durian queen" auction program, where businesses can bid on three unique gold-plated durians.

The auction winner will receive 2 24k gold-plated durians worth 50 million VND and 70 million VND.

One of the issues that many press agencies are concerned about is ensuring traffic circulation and safety during the festival.

Ms. Trinh said that during the opening ceremony of the first durian festival, the locality welcomed about 30,000 people at a time, there were certain shortcomings, so this year they will organize traffic flow and create more parking lots to avoid traffic jams.

In addition, this time there was also a convoy of containers and about 300 pickup trucks and farm vehicles - the main means of transporting durian - also participating in the parade and the district had a plan to avoid traffic jams.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/dak-lak-phan-dau-xuat-khau-sau-rieng-cap-dong-dau-tien-sang-trung-quoc-trong-nam-2024-20240822104558803.htm