The window for bargain durians may already be closing.
Durian prices have been climbing since the start of July, with sellers here noting that supplies are tightening as the Johor harvest season ends.
This is just weeks after a bumper harvest sent durian prices tumbling across Singapore and Malaysia last month.
The days of heavily discounted durians, it seems, are likely over.
“Prices will definitely keep climbing,” Austin Quak, 27, co-founder of Rolling Durian at Kim Keat Avenue, told AsiaOne, adding that the price increase is a reflection of higher demand in the midst of tightening supplies.
Mao Shan Wang, he said, is now priced at $28 to $32 per kilogram. Prices of Mao Shan Wang reportedly fell to around $20 per kg last month.
Similarly, at retailer Dukrian! at Serangoon Gardens, the price of Mao Shan Wang has spiked by at least 50 per cent.
Founder Daren Chan told AsiaOne that the lowest it retailed for was $17 per kilogram during the recent glut, but they are now selling them for $19 per kilogram following dwindling supply.
And prices will only keep rising since the demand for Mao Shan Wang is usually high in July, according to Chan.
“We have already predicted that it’s not a good thing that there’s a durian tsunami last month … [because] it will cause shortage of durians during July,” he pointed out.
Another durian seller, Durian Empire’s owner Zen Ho, 44, said the recent price spike was largely driven by shrinking supplies.
This happened when Johor and Pahang experienced overlapping harvests this season, compounded by a bumper harvest this year, which resulted in an abundant supply and lower prices, according to Ho.
“This created what the industry commonly refers to as the ‘Satu Malaysia’ season, when most durian-producing regions across Malaysia were harvesting simultaneously,” he told AsiaOne.
“Prices are expected to remain firm and may continue to increase over the coming week or so.”
Will prices drop?
So, is there any respite for durian lovers in Singapore?
“The next Pahang harvest is expected around mid-August,” said Ho, adding that “the timing will ultimately depend on weather conditions”.
Chan also shared that durian prices will inevitably cool down slightly either at the end of July or early August, when “there is another small [durian] season”.
“Don’t chase the lowest price, chase the best season. Great durians are remembered long after the price is forgotten,” Chan pointed out, when asked what he would say to durian lovers over the rising prices.
Quak, on the other hand, has this to say: “If they can hold their cravings for about three to four more weeks, then please hold it.”
He warned that consumers were likely to be left disappointed while paying much higher prices than usual during this period.
[[nid:738752]]
helmy.saat@asiaone.com
Top In Asia
