Durian is currently considered the king of crops with the highest selling price and profit margin at present. This year's harvest season, farmers in Đắk Lắk are expecting a significant success as durian is in season and in high demand.
Another factor to look forward to is that this crop is also in high demand for export to China, a market with over 1 billion people.
The farmers' confidence is well-founded as the initial harvest price of durian was over 80,000 VND/kg. In fact, many farmers received advance payments and fixed prices ranging from 86,000 to 87,000 VND/kg.
However, when the main harvest season began, the weather was rainy, and the market was not as lively as in previous years.
At this time, the price of durian has dropped to around 70,000 VND/kg. In addition to the price decrease, many residents of Đắk Lắk are worried and saddened by the fact that the quality of durian is being affected by the prolonged rainy weather.
Mr. Đào Văn Ngà (residing in Hòa Đông Commune, Krông Pắk District) stated: "My family has 200 durian trees, of which 150 are currently in harvest season. This year, we expect to harvest around 15 tons of fruit. Currently, the price of durian has dropped to around 70,000 VND/kg (in 2023, my family sold it for 78,000 VND/kg - PV).
Furthermore, the rate of durian spoilage is quite high (around 20%). The reason is that the prolonged heavy rainfall has created favorable conditions for various types of harmful fungi to develop. I have employed various measures to prevent these fungi from affecting my orchard" - Mr. Ngà explained.
According to Mr. Trần Công Minh, a durian purchasing center in Krông Pắk District, this year, the rate of "drought" (durian with waterlogged fruit - PV) is extremely high. The reason is that the prolonged heavy rainfall has caused durian to retain excess water within the fruit.
"Every day, my center purchases between 10 to 50 tons of "drought" durian, priced between 35,000 to 41,000 VND/kg. This price is half that of high-quality durian with good appearance" - Mr. Minh added.
