Domestic durian is coming soon! Can the price be further reduced?
In May, a large number of imported durians were listed, and "price diving" attracted the attention of all parties. The reporter learned that a large number of domestic durians will also be listed in June and July.
According to industry insiders, the supply of durian in China has been dependent on imports for many years. This year, although domestic durian has made some breakthroughs in planting area and yield, its promotion scope is limited, and it still takes time for consumers to eat domestic durian with good quality and low price.
Domestic durian production increases, and the industry expects it to replace imports.
In Hainan, China, a batch of domestic durians are waiting to be listed. The latest data shows that at present, the planting area of durian in Hainan is close to 40,000 mu, which means that more domestic durians will enter the market in the future.
What is the harvest and quality of domestic durian this year? Zhou Zhaoxi, an associate researcher at the Institute of Tropical Crop Variety Resources, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, told reporters that the domestic durian was commercially planted and listed for the first time last year, which received good market feedback.This year, domestic durian is expected to be listed in mid-May to July. Compared with the domestic durian sold last year, the supply of domestic durian should double this year, and the appearance and taste will be improved.
At present, the durian that Chinese consumers can buy is mostly produced overseas. According to customs data, in 2023, China imported more than 1,425,900 tons of fresh durian, worth about 6.716 billion US dollars, an increase of 72.87% compared with the number of durian imported in 2022.
Chen Lei, secretary-general of China Fruit Circulation Association, told reporters that durian was not produced in China, and the main producing area of durian was in some Southeast Asian countries with lower latitudes. However, the consumption of durian in China is growing very fast, the demand is great, and the supply is relatively short, which leads to the rapid growth of durian import scale and high price in recent years.
"The price of durian is closely related to the supply of durian in the market." Zhang Yu, who is engaged in import and export fruit trade, bluntly said, "Southeast Asian countries are also increasing the planting area of durian. The supply this year is more than in previous years, and the price is naturally cheaper. Compared with imported durian, domestic durian has advantages in transportation distance and variety independence. If domestic durian can be listed on a large scale in the future, the price of durian will be more close to the people. "
What are the difficulties faced by durian "localization"
"Domestic durian is still in a small-scale trial planting stage, and suitable varieties and management techniques are still being explored, and large-scale commercial planting has not yet formed." Chen Lei said.
According to the data of Hainan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, the output of durian in Hainan is expected to reach 50 tons in 2023. Even if the domestic durian production doubles in 2024, it is still far from the annual import of millions of tons of durian in China.
"In Hainan, more than 90% of durian trees have been planted since 2018, and durian trees can only try to’ bear fruit’ in the third to fourth years of planting, and then they can gradually form mass production after the fifth year." Zhou Zhaoxi said, "Durian trees are crisp and not wind-resistant. There are few typhoons in Southeast Asian countries, but there are typhoons and cold currents in Hainan every year. We are also conducting research on dwarfing culture techniques and cold-resistant cultivation of durian trees. After the durian tree is dwarfed, it can reduce the losses caused by natural disasters. "
The small scale of domestic durian cultivation has also discouraged many traders and enterprises who want to promote domestic durian. Zhang Yu once went to Guangxi and other places to look for business opportunities of domestic durian, but the local durian quantity was not enough to meet the market demand, so he chose to wait and see. "The large-scale promotion of domestic durian may take at least five years." Zhang Yu said.
At present, how can I buy domestic durian? Zhou Zhaoxuan said: First, some tourists come to Hainan, and after tasting the domestic durian, they place an order in the local area to buy it, and then make a reservation to the place of origin in advance every year; Second, the person in charge of the durian producing area in Hainan sells it through e-commerce channels; Third, some large enterprises will also come to Hainan to buy durian from local durian growers. On the whole, domestic durian can only be planted on a large scale in Hainan at present, but the planting area in Hainan is also limited, and it will take time to realize large-scale commercial planting.
Can domestic durian make durian more affordable?
After the May Day holiday, a photo of durian on the street in Guangxi with a price of "5 in 100 yuan" became popular on the Internet. Many consumers said on social media that "it is more promising to realize durian freedom".
The reporter saw from the online supermarket and e-commerce platform that the current price of a single durian is more than 100 yuan, and the price per kilogram of durian is about 60 yuan.
After the domestic durian is listed, will the price be lower? Zhou Zhaoxi said,Domestic durian is "ripe on the tree", which has more advantages in taste and freshness than imported durian, and the price may not be significantly reduced.
"’durian freedom’ is a beautiful goal for everyone. To achieve this goal, there must be enough durians on the market. However, at present, durian is still a symbol of high consumption. To realize’ durian freedom’, it is still necessary to increase the planting area and output of domestic durian. At the research end, we are introducing various durian variety resources, cultivating durian varieties suitable for local growth environment and with independent intellectual property rights, and systematically studying the supporting techniques for efficient cultivation of durian; On the market side, enterprises should unite scientific research units to support the sustainable development of durian industry with technology and implement the strategy of "going out-introducing-going out again"; At the government level, do a good job in policy support, suitable district planning, and make certain funds tilt in variety cultivation, technology research and development and achievement transformation. I believe that after the output of domestic durian increases, what everyone calls’ durian freedom’ can be realized. " Zhou Zhaoxi said.