Weather causes 30% drop in durian output in Johor

Moh Farhaan Shah, The Star 7 Jun 10;

JOHOR BARU: The weather has caused a 30% drop in durian output in the state, the Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (Fama) said.

Fama southern region marketing officer Mohd Shapiee Ismail said the drop was due to unpredictable weather which affected the fruiting season.

“Despite the drop, Johor is still the biggest durian producer in the country,” he told reporters after launching Naza Talyya Johor Baru durian promotion.

He said Fama and the Agricultural Department would carry out checks at orchards to ensure the durians were of good quality.

He said Muar was the biggest supplier, producing 2,668 tonnes followed by Pontian (1,820), Kluang (870), Kota Tinggi (690), Segamat (630), Johor Baru (240) and Mersing (220).

He said the state produced a total of 8,000 metric tonnes of durian annually.

“Many of our popular durian grades such as D24 and 101 are exported to Singapore and Hong Kong.

“We also export frozen durian to Australia, where the demand is getting higher,” he added.

Mohd Shapiee said local demand was always higher at the start of the durian season.

“To meet this demand, we have urged farmers to plant more of the popular consumer choices such as D24 and 101. Many of the farmers prefer to plant durian kampung.

“The price for durian kampung is between RM4 to RM5 per kilogramme while D24 and 101 are priced between RM10 and RM15,” he said.

On the Naza Talyya durian promotion, he said it was a good way to promote the king of fruits among hotel guests as many hotels usually had a strict rule on durians.

Naza Talyya Johor Baru hotel manager Mohd Shaufi said the promotion was unique and the hotel was the first in Malaysia to hold such a promotion.

“The package of RM180 nett consists of one night stay with breakfast and all the durian the guest can eat at our alfresco café,” he said.

He added that the promotion was held in conjunction with Cuti-Cuti 1Malaysia and the World Cup.