Abundant Durian, Mangosteen Harvests Seen During Kadayawan

DAVAO CITY, July 3 (PIA) — An official of the Davao City Fruit Council foresees an abundant supply of fruits particularly Durian and Mangosteen during the Kadayawan Festival next month.

Candelario Miculob, president of the DCFC said durian and mangosteen have more than enough supply given that it is harvest time.

He said the prevailing price of durian is at P150.00 per kilo.

At the Durian Festival which will be held at SM Lanang from August 10 to September 25, the price range according to Miculob will be from P40 to P60 per kilo.

He said that street vendors might offer a cheaper price per kilo of durian.

According to Miculob, the durian industry is currently generating dollar earnings for the government’s revenue generation while providing workers in the rural areas.

“Because Mindanao is a vast area, we have more places to plant durian especially at the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, and Region XII, both are potential areas that can be developed given a very huge market,” he said.

Miculob said that the durian industry has expanded its market especially that there is an increasing demand of durian in China.

With its expansion Davao City remains the highest durian producer in the country.

“Many Chinese investors are coming in trying to set up contracts with durian farms and processing facilities in the region, just like what Malaysia is doing,” Miculob said.

However, he said that there is a seeming shrinkage in the hectares of durian plantations since many plantation have been converted to real estate.

Miculob projected that in three years’ time, the durian industry in Davao Region will improve some more but the land use must be addressed accordingly.

He said that currently 25 percent of the whole population in the Philippines already consumes Durian unlike in the past which was only 15 percent.

Miculob said that aside from foreign demand, the country still has a 75 percent market for Durian.

He stressed that the Philippines could respond to the demand gap for Durian worldwide since it has different harvest season compared to Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia, the three biggest producers of durian in the world.

Miculob said Davao City’s harvest time will be from August, September to October which are lean months for the three major durian-producing countries. (RGA/JGSD/PIA-Davao)