‘Durian Tsunami’: Prices crash as Malaysia faces oversupply

“At that time, many people cut down their rubber trees or oil palms to grow durian. Many trees (planted at that time) are now bearing fruit,” said Lu Yue Ting, who owns several durian farms near Rab, Malaysia.

Over the past decade, Malaysian durian production has surged to China, particularly with prized varieties such as the Musang King – a buttery, bitter-sweet fruit grown in abundance that the Chinese have dubbed the “Hermès of durians”.

As musang king gained popularity, “more people came into musang king[farms],” says Lee Wah Chong, who runs a luxury resort and durian farm in Malacca.

The trees in the new plantations reached maturity at the same time, resulting in lower prices in the Malaysian durian market and affecting exports.

Last December, Lu sold Musang King durians to retailers at an average price of 13.50 ringgit ($3.30). This month, Lu said he could only sell them at half price.

Han said he would cut the price of his Musang Kings by about a third to offer customers 50 ringgit per kilogram.

“The market pressure is too much for me,” he said, adding that he is trying to make up for lost profits with other fruits such as bananas.

Some farmers also say they are competing with low quality produce. “Young trees are producing durian, but the quality is not consistent,” says Lee.

Han Sing Keng, a durian farmer and seller in Malaysia’s Johor state, says many durians flooding the market at dumped prices are “unfit for export”.

“They have no other way to sell,” he says. “The name is still Musang King, but the quality is not up to standard.”