EastFruit analysts point out the rapid growth in the popularity of durian among Russian consumers. Imports of fresh durian to Russia grew 2.5 times in the first 10 months of 2021. Wealthy consumers in Russia are ready to pay a lot of money for this exotic fruits, so premium supermarket chains consider it an increasingly important position.

Where does durian grow, how popular is it, and which countries supply durian to the Russian market?

First of all, we note that the global volume of international trade in fresh durian in 2020 approached $3 billion. This is quite a lot, because durian is a rather expensive fruit. For comparison, the global trade in apples fluctuates between $7-8 billion per year.

75% of the global trade in durian is controlled by one country – Thailand. Apparently, it is in Thailand where the majority of Russian consumers with middle and high incomes tried it. Indeed, before the start of the coronavirus pandemic, Thailand was a favorite vacation spot for many Russians.

However, Russia imports durian mainly from Vietnam – the second largest exporter of durian. In general, only three countries of the world export large volumes of durian: Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia. The rest of the countries mainly re-export it.

A limited number of fresh durian exporters is caused by the difficulty in transporting it. Almost none of the world’s leading transport companies agree to transport these strange, but so demanded fruits. You can understand the reasons for such decision by learning more about durian.

What is durian and why do consumers like it?

In Asian countries, where durian grows, this fruit is described briefly: “Hell outside, Heaven inside.” The durian fruit weighs from 1 to 3 kg and looks very aggressive as it is surrounded by sharp thorns. However, this is not the worst thing – what actually scares people away from durian is the disgusting smell. What is the smell of durian like? If you can imagine how a clogged sewer system, rotten fish and onions smell at the same time in the heat, then this will be as close to the truth as possible.

If you overcome these two barriers: thorns and a bad smell, and try the pulp of durian, you will see that its taste is as wonderful as its smell and appearance are terrible. It is not easy to describe the taste of durian, and everyone feels it differently. Consumers often say that the taste of durian resembles eating many fruits at once, such as papaya, pineapple, strawberry, mango, persimmon, vanilla, seasoned with cream!

Therefore, even in Russia there are those who believe that durian is the most delicious fruit in the world. But who is really crazy about durian is the Chinese – they spend more than $2 billion a year on imports of durian! Just as Thailand controls 75% of global exports, China controls 75% of global imports of durian.

Russia is still far from China, but it may become one of the 30 largest importers of durian in the world in 2021 for the first time. However, this indicates a great potential for durian supplies to the Russian market in the longer term, provided that there will be no further significant decrease in the income level of the population.

Besides the high prices, disgusting smell, unfriendly appearance and great taste, durian is also considered to be one of the most healthy fruits. Many people consider durian a superfood due to its high content of vitamins and minerals. Durian fruits contain a lot of magnesium, zinc, calcium, fiber, vitamins of groups A, B, C. What is very important for women, it contains a lot of folic acid. Durian has also been shown to have strong bactericidal properties.

What makes durian especially popular among tourists in Thailand is that the locals consider it to be a strong aphrodisiac. In addition, durian is believed to increase the chances of pregnancy in a couple who consume durian due to its indole and estrogen content. However, there is no scientific evidence for this property of durian, and this can only be a marketing trick, but it works great.

In countries where durian grows, it is forbidden to bring it to hotels and to transport it on airplanes, even in super-tight and sealed packaging. Also, it should not be consumed by nursing women, pregnant women and people with high blood pressure.

Note also that, despite its formidable shell, durian fruits are quite tender and are easily damaged during long-term transportation. And this also limits their exports. Durian is usually delivered to consumers by air.

How is durian grown?

Durian grows on very tall trees. The height of the durian tree can reach 40-50 meters. Therefore, harvesting durian is a difficult and dangerous job.

Industrial varieties of durian trees give their first harvest in the fourth or fifth year after planting, although most durian trees in nature begin to bear fruit only 15 years after germination from seeds. Despite there being many varieties of durian in the wild, only a few of them are considered edible and are cultivated by farmers in tropical countries.

At the same time, most varieties of durian can bear fruit twice a year. Interestingly, the flowers on durian trees open in the evening. Moreover, their smell is not as unpleasant as the smell of ripe fruits. However, durian is not pollinated by insects, but by animals – the smell of durian flowers attracts bats – the main pollinator of these unusual fruits.

Durian can only be successfully grown in tropical climates. Considering the difficulties of transportation, it is best to consume durian in the places where it grows in order to truly appreciate its unique taste, and, of course, its terrible smell.

By the way, the annual world durian festival is held at the beginning of May in Thailand, in the province of Chanthaburi. Can you imagine the smell there?

Сообщение Exotic durian with a disgusting smell is becoming more and more popular in Russia появились сначала на EastFruit.

According to EastFruit analysts, in the first two months of 2021, China increased fruit imports by 34% over the same period in 2020 to a record $ 3.2 billion. Thus, in just two years, fruit imports to China in January-February grew by $ 1 billion, or 45%, and in four years (in 2021 to 2017), fruit imports to China tripled!

Considering such an impressive growth rate of fruit imports to China, the decline in imports of cherries looks unexpected. Cherries become a kind of symbol of the country’s economic growth, known as “China’s cherry freedom.”  The decline in cherry imports, however, was rather insignificant – only one and a half percent. Still, during this period, sweet cherries were the No. 1 imported fruit in China.

The import of bananas, unexpectedly, grew by 74%, which allowed the banana to bypass longan – another tropical fruit popular at this time of the season in China. Bananas were exported to China mainly by the Philippines (62% share in imports) and Ecuador (28%).

Longan, also called the “dragon’s eye”, ranked third among the most popular imported fruits in China in January-February 2021, and its imports grew by 9%. Only two countries supplied this fruit to China – Thailand and Vietnam.

Imports of table grapes also rose, after falling a year earlier during the coronavirus outbreak. In January-February 2021, China imported $ 133 million worth of grapes, mainly from Peru. There was an upward trend in grape supplies from Chile but share of this country was not very high during this period.

The record holder for the growth rate of fruit imports to China over the specified period was mangosteen – an exotic fruit that was supplied to China mainly from Thailand and Indonesia. Its imports jumped 14 times or 1400% over the previous year and reached $ 107 million.

What about durian? After all, we know that durian has been the main imported fruit to China in the recent years. The growth rate of durian imports is still impressive – in January-February 2021 imports of durian to China increased 4.5 times compared to previous year! Therefore, in 2021 we are likely to see a new record of durian imports to China. And -Thailand was the only country supplier of durians to China in January-February 2021.

Among other top positions in the fruit and nut imported by China in the first two months of 2021, imports of the following ones increased: blueberries – by 6%, pistachios – by 7%, pineapples – 2.5 times, peaches – by 40% and plums – by 78%.

The dragon-fruit was the only other position, besides cherries, imports of which dropped in the period in review. Dragon fruit imports to China decreased by 25%.

Chile remained atop the ranking of fruit and nuts supplying countries to China in January-February 2021, earning more than $ 1 billion in just two months. Chile is followed by Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines, USA and Peru. In the United States, the top three export positions were occupied by the nuts: pistachios, almonds and hazelnuts. Moreover, for hazelnuts there was the sharpest increase in supplies – 900 times! For walnuts, supplies also increased significantly. The USA also supplied fresh orange and apple to China, but there was a sharp decline in exports of these fruit categories.

Сообщение Fruit imports to China breaking records in early 2021. What’s trending? появились сначала на EastFruit.

Loladze Farm grows exotic fruits and it has partially replaced their import counterparts in the Georgian market. In particular, kiwano melon is now sold exclusively of local production in Georgia, reports the business-partner.ge website.

Loladze Farm is a family-run business with 10 hectares located in the town of Lagodekhi in the Kakheti region of Eastern Georgia. For the last 6 years, the farm has been focusing on the production of exotic fruits, which now include mini-kiwi, okra, pepino, kiwano, physalis, and black corn. The farm’s products are sold in Georgian supermarket chains, including AgroHub and Goodwill.

“After we started producing kiwano, imports of this fruit to Georgia completely stopped. The reason is that the imported products were no longer for sale. Naturally, in their case, the transportation costs were quite high, therefore, they could not compete with us in price,” said Lasha Loladze, one of the founders of the company, to business-partner.ge in an interview.

Read also: Dugili co-founder thinks Georgian cider could conquer local and world markets

Kiwano, also known as horned melon or African cucumber, belongs to the pumpkin family originating from Africa. Today, it is produced mainly in South America, Israel, Italy, and New Zealand. The fruit is a small oval-shaped melon 10-15 cm long with spikes on the rind. The flesh is green with white oblong seeds. Kiwano is used in salads, cocktails, and more.

Physalis (the nightshade family) is also called golden berry. Its fruits are rich in vitamins A, B, and C. They can be eaten fresh or dried and are used to decorate desserts or for marinades. For physalis, Mr Loladze stated import substitution is minimal and therefore its import to Georgia from Colombia and some other countries continue.

Lasha Loladze points out that Georgians are conservative and acceptance of innovations is hard, which also applies to exotic fruits. “When zucchini first entered the market, it was difficult to sell for several years. It takes time to get used to everything here,” he said.

In 2021, Loladze Farm does not plan to further expand its range of agricultural crops. Instead, it will focus on the development of a culinary line of tortillas made from black corn flour, which the farm began growing last year.

Сообщение Exotic fruits grown locally offset imports in the Georgian market появились сначала на EastFruit.

During the period before New Year’s, the assortment of exotic fruits and vegetables had noticeably increased in Moldovan retail chains. This product line had grown by at least 20%. However, despite appearances, such promotions are explained not so much by a significant demand for exotic goods for winter holidays but by the chains’ attempt to gain a competitive advantage and to lure more customers to their supermarkets on an excursion in the produce departments.

Store managers of large supermarket chains told EastFruit that the Moldovan buyer is, in principle, conservative in his food preferences. This observation is also quite applicable to expensive exotic fruits such as the Vietnamese dragon fruit (pitahaya), Colombian goldenberry (physalis), Chinese feijoa (Acca) and ziziphus (jujube), Israeli kumquat, and Caucasus medlar. With certain reservations, off-season melons (Netherlands) and some grape varieties (Peru and Chile) can also be classified as exotic. Asparagus has not become yet familiar and figs and dates have somewhat lost their former popularity.

Supermarket marketers in Chisinau are sure that the main reason for low demand is high prices. For certain exotic fruits, prices reach 360-400 lei/kg ($20.70-23.10/kg). For example, in optimum and premium chain segments, the price of imported asparagus reached 250 lei/kg ($14.50/kg) and local asparagus at 75-90 lei ($4.30-5.20/kg). Some fruits are sold individually. Physalis costs about 33 lei/kg ($1.90/kg). This and some other products in supermarkets at retail prices, according to store workers, are purchased mainly not by end consumers, but by restaurateurs of small niche establishments.

Read also: Sales of fresh fruits and vegetables jumped in Moldovan supermarkets before New Year’s

The high price tag for exotic fruits is explained by weak demand and high costs like transport costs. As practice shows, even on holidays, Moldovan consumers allow themselves more traditional foreign fruits such as citrus fruits, bananas, kiwis, and pomegranates. Yet, in the last five years, mangos, avocados, and pineapples have been increasingly present in their holiday diet but almost never longan, pitahaya, and cherimoya (although you can sometimes find them in premium markets).

According to merchants, the exotic product group is used in trade exclusively to expand the product line. Retail is forced to compete, offering a wide assortment in the produce department as an indication of good taste and an anchor for the ordinary consumer. However, a very significant part (sometimes half) of the exotic commodity volume after the expiration date is returned to the supplier or disposed of.

Сообщение Low demand for exotic fruits due to high prices in Moldova появились сначала на EastFruit.