Chinese buy US$15 million worth of Malaysian Musang King durian in one-hour online sale
- A record 300,000 Musang King durians were sold, underlining the Chinese appetite for the fruit
- China imported 600,000 tonnes of durian worth US$1.7 billion last year, with 7,700 tonnes worth US$67 million coming from Malaysia
A record total of 300,000 Musang King durians were snapped up in less than one hour in an online flash sale in China.
The sale yesterday was part of the 2020 China-Malaysia (Guangxi) online durian festival in the Chinese city of Qinzhou.
Weighing about 60 tonnes in total, the durians sold out in exactly 50 minutes and 48 seconds with sales recorded worth about 61.2 million Malaysian ringgit (US$14.7 million).
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The record sales was announced at the launch of the durian festival, which was conducted online from three sites – in Qinzhou, as well as in Kuala Lumpur and Raub, Pahang.
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He said according to statistics, China imported 600,000 tonnes of durian worth US$1.7 billion last year, with 7,700 tonnes worth US$67 million coming from Malaysia.
“Despite the Covid-19 outbreak, I believe the demand for Malaysian durian will not be threatened,” he said in a speech that was read out by Malaysia-China business council director Datuk Fong Tian Yong at the event in Kuala Lumpur.
“We should keep these numbers growing to benefit both countries in terms of the economy, and resource, cultural and knowledge sharing.”
China imported 3,200 tonnes of frozen durian pulp and paste from Malaysia amounting to US$41 million in 2018.
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China-Malaysia Qinzhou Industrial Park vice-chairman Datuk Beh Hang Kong said they were exploring the possibility of setting up a Malaysian durian hub in the industrial estate.
He said the hub would cover everything from the supply chain, logistics, processing, the downstream industry to a permanent durian bazaar.
“From our research, only about 3 per cent of the Chinese population had tried Malaysian durians. I strongly believe that durian can be a big export for our country,” he said, adding that with strong support from the government, they could look at a market size of up to US$1 billion.
Read the original article in The Star.
