Mao Shan Wang durians in Malaysia now 50% cheaper due to coronavirus outbreak in China: Report

Durians from Malaysia may be about to get cheaper, thanks to a glut in supply there.

According to a report in Channel NewsAsia, prices for the fruit have fallen in Malaysia by up to 50 per cent over the past two weeks due to the coronavirus outbreak reducing the demand from China.

The report quoted plantation owner and durian expert Lim Chin Khee as saying that the price of the highly prized Mao Shan Wang (MSW) variety has dropped from RM60 (S$20) to about RM30 (S$10) per kilo in Raub Pahang, known to be Malaysia's durian capital.

The country began exporting fresh whole durians to China from June last year, with the industry predicted to generate almost RM500 million to the country's total export value.

"What if the virus situation gets worse? We will have a lot of unwanted durians in cold storage," Lim reportedly said, as durians meant for export to China are usually frozen in liquid nitrogen freezers.

He added: "Durians are a luxury food, and are best enjoyed in happier times. Maybe now is not the best time to eat durians together in big groups."

But how would the drop in price impact the sale of fruit here in Singapore? 

Online durian purveyors we spoke to say they have seen a dip in prices compared to previous months. However, responses were mixed as to whether the drop would be extreme.

As durians exported to China are usually frozen, one seller shared that the surplus stock is unlikely to have much of an impact as they are not commonly sold here.

Kelvin Tan, manager of 99 Old Trees, said the price of MSW currently stands at $19 to $23, which is "a slight drop compared to previous months," when it was sold for between $20 and $26 per kilo.

But he doesn't think prices will go down much further, what with the upcoming end to the durian season. 

He explained: "Yes, there are order cancellations and a slow-down in book orders from China. As such, some companies have an overstock in frozen durians that were previously stocked up.

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"But that does not affect the fresh durian prices, it only affects the frozen durian market. And frozen durians are not commonly imported into Singapore.

"Moreover, we are already coming to the last leg of this November to February durian season. It is probably going to end in another two weeks' time."

Jonathan Poon, operations manager of Durian Delivery Singapore, however, expects prices to decline further following the decrease in demand.

Poon said he's seen prices of durians drop by 30 per cent in the weeks since before Chinese New Year, where MSW was still going for $26 per kilo.

Now, Poon says prices stand between $18 and $22 for MSW and Black Gold varieties.

Poon's business mostly involves packing the fruit for online deliveries, but he stressed that proper sanitisation procedures are in place at their facility and workers at his packing area don gloves and masks.

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candicecai@asiaone.com