China’s growing love of durians turns Thai farmers into millionaires
China's craving for the 'king of fruits' has propelled Thailand's durian business to record highs, creating significant economic opportunities for farmers.
Life was different for Kanjana and Apichet 29 years ago. At that time, Apichet was just a factory technician, and Kanjana was a fruit seller. However, as more orders for durians came from China and the fruit's profit potential became clear, Apichet quit his job, and the married couple took a risky plunge into the business—focusing solely on durian production. The risk proved to be a boon, as the couple now runs one of Thailand's biggest durian packaging companies.
"I never thought I would get to this level. Earlier, when we did wholesale, we got anywhere between 100 to 5,000 baht a day (about 2.70 to 136 US dollars). When we moved to a bigger market, we were making up to 100,000 baht (about 2,700 US dollars). Now, having created our own export business, we are earning not just millions but hundreds of millions of Baht," said Apichet Chitfour, now the co-owner of Rachadurian Company Ltd.
During the pandemic, the couple was surprised at the increasing demand for durians from China. Their company exported durians worth over 2.7 million US dollars in one year.
Kanjana and Apichet have built relationships with farmers all over the country, ensuring they can export seasonal fruit all year round.
They froze premium-grade durians for export to counter the fruit's short shelf life. Ripe Grade A durians are blast-frozen at minus 40 degrees Celsius for 12 hours before shipment.
In 2023, durian exports from Southeast Asia to China amounted to 6.7 billion U.S. dollars, 12 times more than in 2017. This year, Thailand has already exported up to 2.4 billion U.S. dollars to China, with a growth of 3-4 %.
One of the main reasons for the growth is the increased transport channels for durians—trucks, ships, airplanes, and the recently constructed high-speed trains.
"In the past, it was difficult to make long-distance deliveries of fresh durians. Today, developed transportation such as the high-speed train enables us to have faster deliveries of fresh fruits. We are then able to expand our market even further," said Wichai Siramanakul, CEO of Ntf Intergroup.
Thai exporters expect further growth in the next five years as durians reach secondary Chinese cities. Despite the entry of other players, such as Vietnam, Thai farmers are confident in their produce as it takes years of experience to cultivate durians with the right texture and taste.
"To become an expert, you need to be able to detect the difference in the durian flesh. You have to be very diligent at learning how to tell the difference. You have to know what color indicates that it's sweet and what color says it's not. You have to keep studying until you become an expert," said Apichet.
Farmers like Apichet are excited about the future as more Chinese consumers fall in love with the "king of fruits." For them, this is just the beginning of their dreams coming true.
