By Shikin Louis
KUCHING, Jan 3: Sarawak is enjoying an exceptionally abundant durian season this year, with the fruit flooding the markets in unprecedented numbers.
Many durian sellers, who are accustomed to the yearly fluctuations in the “king of fruits,” attribute this bumper crop to favourable weather and improved farming techniques, which have significantly boosted yields.
Wan Farahin Wan Redzuan, a 35-year-old full-time fruit seller from Petra Jaya, said the influx of durians this year has led to increased supply and pricing options to suit different consumer preferences.
His durians are priced according to size: RM5, RM8, RM10, RM15, and RM20 for a ‘double A’ size durian.
Customers can also buy the fruits in bundles: three for RM10 for the smallest size, three for RM40 for an A size durian, and three for RM50 for a ‘double A’ size durian.
“This year (2024) is really ‘crazy’ because durians are falling in every area from Sarikei, Engkilili, Sibu, Bintulu, Sri Aman, Serian, up to Padawan.
“Bau’s durian season has also started. Once all the durians have fallen in Serian, the durian trees in Bau may bear fruit afterward,” he told DayakDaily.
Wan Farahin added that his business sells an average of 2,000 durians daily, with numbers peaking from Fridays to Sundays.
“By the time we need to close, we will ‘lelong’ (auction) the durians until every fruit is sold. We don’t mind doing this because we usually get the return on the capital from sales during the day,” he explained.
He sources his durians from a remote orchard near Kampung Taee, Serian, and sells them roadside near Emart Matang. He also operates at PCC Demak and Benteng Matang.
When the durian season concludes, Wan Farahin plans to continue selling other fruits like salak and guava. During Ramadan, he will shift his business to selling ‘suntong tutok’ (dried cuttlefish) and ‘lemang’ (glutinous rice cooked in bamboo) for Raya Aidilfitri.
Meanwhile, 55-year-old Safiri Salleh from Bintawa, affectionately known as Nek Sidi, said he has been selling various types of fruits for 38 years.
This durian season, Nek Sidi sources his stock from Padawan, Mongkos, and Lachau.
“In a day, I sell about 7,000 to 8,000 durians. The price ranges from three for RM10, four for RM10, and if the fruit has been overnight, we sell it at the price of five for RM10.
“Due to the fruit surplus, we sometimes sell the durians at RM1 per fruit before closing down our business at night,” he elaborated.
Based on his experience, Safiri believes the current durian season, which began in early December 2024, to continue until the end of January 2025.
“While the durian season is already in full swing, some durian trees in certain areas have yet to bear fruit,” he added.
Unlike previous years, he isn’t importing durians from Indonesia this season—a clear proof to Sarawak’s exceptional durian harvest in 2024.
However, Safiri noted that more fruitful durian seasons had occurred in the past.
“I say this because, during the 2023 season, I was able to sell up to 10,000 durians per day, with prices between RM1 and RM3 each,” he emphasised. –DayakDaily
