By Christine Fabro
The Philippines commenced its commercial shipment of fresh durian to China, in fulfillment of the bilateral agreement between the two countries sealed early January.
Sourced from producers and processors in the Davao Region, the first batch of 28-ton durian cargo was shipped to China on Thursday, April 6, through the Davao International Airport.
Another shipment of 28-ton durian was sent off via airfreight, while 10 container vans loaded with 7.2 tons of durian were transported via sea vessel on Saturday, April 8.
“Prior to the first batch of export, the [General Administration of Customs of China] released the list of qualified facilities and farms that received the “green light” from the Chinese government,” the Department of Agriculture (DA) said in a statement.
“This consists of five packaging facilities and 58 durian farms,” it added.
The DA noted that the deal is expected to gain $260 million or P14.3 billion in revenue for the local durian industry.
The agreement on the “Protocol of the Phytosanitary Requirements for Export of Fresh Durian from the Philippines to China” was sealed during the state visit of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. in Beijing last Jan. 4. — gb