COVID-19 may leave you worrying about many things, but here’s one thing you can worry less about.
Durians.
Lest you’re thinking that durian is a dessert, I’ll have you know that it’s actually very nutritionally dense food (but with a lot of calories).
Oh yeah, I’m thinking durians for lunch and dinner.
But the reason why you’ll want to consider this in the first place is due to the title: prices.
Fall In Durian Prices Because of Lack of Tourist
According to 99OldTrees, a durian retailer, the durian season is likely to begin in early to mid-May 2020.
In case you weren’t paying attention since there isn’t a need to look at the calendar while being a shut-in, that’s right now.
And based on their analysis, prices are expected to drop significantly. Why? Malaysian durian prices are mainly affected by three markets: Malaysia’s domestic market, China, and Singapore.
Malaysia is expecting a drop in demand because Singaporeans aren’t visiting JB for durians. People are also used to visiting roadside stalls instead of dabaoing or delivering, so domestic demand is also dropping.
In Singapore, companies have to cancel durian parties, so that’s another factor.
China? China’s demand is actually growing since the Wuhan lockdown is lifted. Looking around the news, you’ll even find that durians in Thailand actually rose in prices because of Chinese demand.
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But 99OldTrees expect that prices will fall by 25-40%, though not as low as 60% that is reported elsewhere.
Grade A Mao Shang Wang will be priced between S$15-17 at season peak, then go up to S$19-24 in the early stages and the end of the season. FYI, durian seasons typically start from April to August and peak in June.
Reader: Wait a minute. Isn’t that like… not much changed?
You may be right, but that’s mostly for MSW. Just read on and you’ll know why.
Dry Spell & Lack of Manpower At Farms
Weather conditions meant that the durian farms needed more care, and because of the lockdown, there is a shortage of staff, according to a durian trader Tan Chee Keat.
Without staff to look after and water them, durians might drop before they ripen. This meant a higher rejection rate, although not enough to prevent the drop in prices. They are still expecting more supply than demand overall.
Ah Seng Durian noted a rejection rate of around 50% in late-April. And the high rejection rate is actually the reason why MSW prices remain about the same.
If you’re wondering what happens to rejected durians, Ah Seng makes durian purees out of them.
In June, the quality of durians should be more consistent since everything should be back to normal.
COVID-19 has brought nothing but bad news, but for the first time, it’s finally bringing in one positive news.
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