DAVAO CITY – This city may have lost several durian farms in favor of residential developments in recent years, but it remains the top producer of the “king of fruits” as it accounts for 60 percent of the country’s total harvest.
Larry Miculob, the president of the Davao City Durian Industry Association (DCDIA), said there still remained 2,800 hectares of land planted to durian of the total 16,600 hectares nationwide.
Davao Region used to have 10,000 hectares of durian farm, but around 2,000 hectares were damaged by the Typhoon Pablo in 2012.
“Of the total production in the country, 60 percent come from Davao,” Miculob told reporters during Monday’s Kapehan sa Dabaw at SM Annex.
Davao City produces an average of 30 tons of durian, despite recent developments that saw the conversion of durian plantations into residential zones, as well as the negative impact of extreme weather conditions.
For instance Miculob said the El Niño in 2016 and the heavy rainfall last year took a toll on the production of durian and other fruits like mangosteen and lanzones.
Although the fruit farms are starting to recover, Miculob said the farm gate price will no longer be lower than PHP25 per kilo price in the previous years.
DCDIA has set the farm gate price at PHP40 per kilo to help farmers earn and encourage farm owners to expand production areas, Miculob said.
Aside from weather and land conversion, Miculob said the low supply and high demand also triggered the spike in prices–in addition to the increasing number of processors that are exporting their products.
Miculob said he is expecting around 48 metric tons during the duration of the Durian Festival and Kadayawan in August and September. –Lilian C. Mellejor/PNA
