Sitting indoors and seeing more than 1 hectare of durian struggling to endure heavy rain for the past two weeks, Mr. Dinh Xuan Hai (Hoa Dong commune, Krong Pac district, Dak Lak province) could not hide his concern.
"In recent days, continuous heavy rain has made me very worried about the durian garden that is preparing for harvest. This is a period of strong fruit development, so there is a lot of rain with wind, which can easily cause pests and diseases, and break branches. If the weather is favorable, my family will estimate to harvest about 10 tons this year" - Mr. Hai shared.
In Ea Tong commune (Krong Nang district), Mr. Tran Hong also suffered many sleepless nights because his durian garden suffered many consecutive, prolonged rains. Every time it rains heavily in the middle of the night, he is busy going out to the garden, plowing into branches and splashing water.
Not only farmers, but also durian purchasing enterprises are facing unrest due to unfavorable weather.
Ms. Nguyen Thai Huyen - representative of Viet Nong Phat Agricultural Company Limited (Krong Pac district) - said that currently, durian prices are still high - from 60,000 to 80,000 VND/kg depending on quality. In Binh Phuoc, the purchase price at the garden also ranges from 65,000 - 75,000 VND/kg.
However, Ms. Huyen is concerned that prolonged rain near the crop could cause durian to become rice-dense, affecting the quality. "The fruit growing period is very important, people need to pay attention to good nutrition and drainage. This year, the enterprise plans to buy about 1,000 tons of durian in the area" - Ms. Huyen said.
Krong Pac district currently has 8,100 hectares of durian - the largest area in Dak Lak province. The 2024 harvest is estimated at 92,016 tons, an increase of more than 11,800 tons compared to the previous year, with an average yield of 227.9 quintals/ha.
According to the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Dak Lak province, the durian growing area in the whole province is currently 38,800 hectares, accounting for about 21.7% of the total durian growing area in the country. Each year, the province's durian output increases by about 126,000 tons, and in 2024 alone it is estimated to reach more than 1.5 million tons.
However, the rate of growing areas and packaging facilities granted export codes is still low. The application of science and technology in production is still limited, and the quality of the fruit is not uniform. In particular, the value chain is still loose, and production infrastructure has not been invested synchronously.
