In the first half of this year, durian exports reached about 1.5 billion USD. It is expected that the whole year will reach 3.5 billion USD, equal to fruit and vegetable exports a few years ago.

Entering the billion-dollar group thanks to increased production

Fruits and vegetables are one of the key agricultural products with impressive growth in the first half of this year. Information from the General Department of Customs shows that in the first 6 months of the year, fruit and vegetable exports reached 3.33 billion USD, an increase of 24.3% over the same period last year.

In the success of fruit and vegetable exports, durian has made a great contribution. In the first 5 months of this year, durian exports reached 919 million USD, an increase of 74% over the same period in 2023. It is estimated that in the first half of the year, durian exports reached about 1.5 billion USD. Thus, after only half a year, durian has entered the group of export products over 1 billion USD.

Durian exports increased sharply in the first half of this year, primarily due to more abundant durian output compared to the same period last year. Mr. Dang Phuc Nguyen, General Secretary of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association (Vinafruit), said that farmers in the Mekong Delta provinces such as Tien Giang, Vinh Long, etc. have boosted off-season durian production, thereby significantly increasing output in the first half of this year. According to the Department of Crop Production, about 50-60% of durian acreage in the Mekong Delta is currently growing off-season.

In addition, unfavorable weather conditions have caused durian output to drop sharply in Thailand, creating more market opportunities for Vietnamese durian.

According to the General Administration of Customs of China, in the first 4 months of this year, durian imports into China reached only over 202 thousand tons, down 35.2% compared to the same period last year. The decrease in imported durian was not due to a decrease in consumption demand but due to a sharp decrease in supply from Thailand.

Due to a shortage of supply from Thailand, many Chinese traders have switched to buying Vietnamese durian. Therefore, in the first 4 months of this year, while Thai durian imports into China decreased by 55.2% in volume, Vietnamese durian increased by 91.4% (reaching 79 thousand tons). The market share of Vietnamese durian thus continued to increase sharply and reached about 40% in the first 4 months of the year (in 2023, Vietnamese durian accounted for 35% of China's total durian imports).

Aiming for $3.5 billion

It is worth noting that the contribution to the 1.5 billion USD of durian exports in the first half of the year was mainly off-season durian in the Mekong Delta, plus a part of the main-season durian in this region and durian in the Central Coast and Southeast. This means that a large amount of durian, especially durian in the Central Highlands, will participate in exports in the second half of the year.

Durian in the Central Highlands. Photo: Thanh Son.

According to Mr. Nguyen Quoc Manh, Deputy Director of the Department of Crop Production, the area of ​​durian in the country is currently about 150 thousand hectares, of which half is in the Central Highlands (more than 75 thousand hectares).

Durian is currently grown in 4 regions: the Mekong Delta, the Southeast, the Central Coast and the Central Highlands, with the main durian harvest season lasting from April to near the end of the year.

Specifically, the Mekong Delta provinces enter the main durian harvest season from April to August. Also from April, the Central Coast provinces of Binh Thuan and Khanh Hoa harvest durian and last until June. From May to July, is the durian harvest time in the Southeast. In Dak Nong, durian harvest time is from July to September. Dak Lak also harvests durian from July but lasts until October. Gia Lai and Kon Tum enter the season later, harvesting in September and ending in October. Lam Dong is the province that harvests durian the latest, in October and November.

Thus, it can be seen that in the second half of this year, durian exports will continue to be vibrant when the Central Highlands provinces enter the durian harvest. In addition to durian in the Central Highlands, many durian areas in the Mekong Delta are harvested in the main season in July and August. Then from September to the end of the year, durian in the Mekong Delta will be harvested off-season (the off-season durian growing period in the Mekong Delta lasts from September this year to March next year). In addition, the supply is also supplemented by durian in the Southeast.

Vietnam's increasing durian output is also an important factor in increasing durian export turnover. Mr. Dang Phuc Nguyen said that many durian areas were planted 5-6 years ago and are starting to be harvested this year. Therefore, it is estimated that Vietnam's durian output this year will increase by 15-20% compared to 2023.

With increased output nationwide and more than half of the durian area harvested from July to November, durian exports in the second half of this year are expected to be higher than in the first half of the year, thereby bringing the whole year's exports to the 3.5 billion USD mark, equivalent to the export of the entire fruit and vegetable industry in 2021.

Information from a number of businesses and cooperatives shows that the demand for purchasing durian with growing area codes for export to China is very large. Ms. Dang Thi Thuy Nga, Director of Xuan Dinh Agricultural Service and Trade Cooperative (Xuan Loc District, Dong Nai), said that with 57 hectares granted an area code for export to China, the cooperative has recently supplied 2,000 tons of durian to export enterprises. Partner enterprises of Xuan Dinh Cooperative come from many regions across the country such as Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Tien Giang... regularly place orders for export.

Prices fall due to increased competition

Durian prices in China are falling due to increased competition. Photo: Thanh Son.

There is a problem that is being raised that the price of imported durian to China (the world's largest durian consumer market) is showing a downward trend. Specifically, according to the General Administration of Customs of China, in April 2024, the average price of imported durian to this country was 5.38 USD/kg, significantly lower than the average import price in March 2024 of 5.63 USD/kg. Of which, the average price of imported durian from Vietnam was 4.22 USD/kg, down more than 1 USD/kg compared to the average price in March (5.23 USD/kg).

The decrease in durian prices is due to increasingly fierce competition between durian exporting countries to China, as the area and output of durian in many Southeast Asian countries continue to increase and more countries are exporting fresh durian to this market. In June, fresh Musang King durian from Malaysia was officially exported to China.

However, Mr. Dang Phuc Nguyen said that the decrease in durian prices in the Chinese market is not a matter of concern, because the price of durian in China has long been high, making it unaffordable for many consumers. When the price of durian decreases, more Chinese people will be able to buy durian and use it regularly, leading to the country's demand for durian imports continuing to increase.

Market research reports show that the demand for durian in China continues to grow strongly. According to a 2023 report by HSBC bank, global durian consumption increased by 400% within 2 years, of which China accounted for 91% of total demand.According to Mordor Intelligence, in 2024, the global fresh durian market size was 9.85 billion USD. From now until 2029, the global fresh durian market is forecast to grow by 9.4%/year and reach a size of 15.43 billion USD in 2029.

Source: Nongnghiep.vn