Malaysia to enter China's fresh durian market

After Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines, Malaysia may enter the Chinese fresh durian market next year.

Chinese and Malaysian officials are in talks to open up their fresh durian markets as demand for the fruit grows. Chan Foong Hin, Malaysia’s deputy minister of agriculture and food security, said his agency met with a Chinese customs delegation on October 5 and signed a six-point statement on durian.

The statement said China agreed to speed up the risk assessment of fresh durians from Malaysia and that both sides would work together to improve quarantine measures. The Malaysian Agriculture Ministry hopes that China will approve the import of fresh durians from the country next year.

China has imported frozen durian segments from Malaysia since 2017 and whole frozen fruit since 2019. The fresh fruit export license will help Malaysia compete with Thailand, which exports 99% of its durian imports – both fresh and frozen – to China’s $4 billion market. The Philippines and Vietnam are the only other countries that are allowed to export fresh durian to China.

Fresh durian for sale in China. Photo: He Huifeng — Fresh durian for sale in China. Photo: *He Huifeng*

Song Seng Wun, an economic adviser at CGS-CIMB Securities (Singapore), said that the new supply from the new country will help stabilize the Chinese market, as demand remains high. Some people also buy this expensive fruit as gifts for engagements and weddings.

Malaysia's most famous durian is the Musang King variety, which is popular among the Chinese. Some customers have dubbed it the "Hermes durian." Simon Chin, founder of Malaysian exporter DKing, believes that Chinese buying power will help boost his company's sales. "Once they try the Musang King, they will know the taste and quality," he said.

After more than four years of cultivation, China had its first domestic durian harvest this year, with 50 tonnes sold in June. Since durian trees take several years to mature, replacing imports with domestic sources is unlikely in the near future.

Ibrahim Suffian, program director at Merdeka Centre in Kuala Lumpur, said legalizing fresh durian exports to China could spur the expansion of growing areas in Malaysia. He said durian is now a “niche industry” in a country where palm oil is dominant. Some Chinese have even come here to invest in durian farming.

According to the Malaysian statistics agency, the country produces more than 300,000 tons of durian each year, mainly serving domestic consumers.

Phien An ( according to SCMP )

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