Durian prices in La Dạ drop due to tough, fibrous flesh.

In mid-September, La Dạ commune (Lam Dong province) experienced prolonged heavy rain for several days. At the same time, many durian orchards were in the final stages of ripening, and the rain caused the fruit to become tough and unripe. As a result, durian prices plummeted, causing significant losses for many farmers in their final harvest...

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La Dạ currently has over 1,500 hectares of durian, mainly grown as a monoculture in the villages of Da Tro, La Day, Da Kim, Daguri, and Village 4. Durian is considered a crop that brings in significantly higher income than other traditional crops in the region. The climate in the villages of La Dạ varies; the villages of Da Tro, La Day, and Da Kim are influenced by the climate of the Lang Biang plateau - Da Lat, resulting in average temperatures 4-6 degrees Celsius lower than those in Daguri and Village 1.

Therefore, durian in La Dạ has different harvesting times. In Hamlet 4 and Đaguri, there are nearly 300 hectares of durian that usually ripen in June, while in the hamlets of Đa Tro, La Dày, and Đa Kim, there are more than 1,200 hectares that are harvested later, from the end of July to September.

Due to varying harvesting times, durian prices in La Dạ commune also differ. Sometimes, in the lower areas of Hamlet 1 and Đaguri, the harvest coincides with mass harvesting in other places, resulting in low prices. Other times, companies needing large quantities for export buy at high prices, leading to substantial profits for the farmers.

Conversely, the Da Tro, La Day, and Da Kim areas sometimes harvest later than other regions, and durian prices rise during periods of scarcity. However, if prolonged rainy weather occurs, like this year, the Da Tro, La Day, and Da Kim areas are more susceptible to quality issues.

Mr. Phan Dung, who owns over 8 hectares of durian trees in Da Tro village, shared: "In the Da Tro, La Day, and Da Kim areas, most durian farmers harvest in 2-3 batches. The first batch is from mid to late July, the second in early August, and the third in mid-September. The first two harvests are usually the main season because they yield high productivity, quality, and price, while the third is a last-minute harvest because the yield is lower than the first two, and prices are unstable because the fruit often has tough flesh due to the peak of the rainy season."

The characteristics of durian fruit when it is mature or nearly ripe are highly dependent on the weather. In hot, sunny weather, growers water the trees to cool them down, but prolonged rain will cause the durian fruit to have tough flesh, pale color, uneven ripening, and a lack of aroma.

Ms. Hong Nguyet, a durian buyer in La Da commune supplying export businesses, said: "Durians with unripe flesh are very difficult to buy because it's impossible to quantify the percentage of unripe fruit. If less than 20% of the fruit is unripe, we can still buy them to sell to processing units for ice cream, food, etc., but if more than 40% is unripe, no one buys them for fear of losses. The price of unripe Ri6 durians in La Da is currently very cheap, only about 15,000 - 17,000 VND/kg, while ripe durians still maintain a price of 40,000 - 75,000 VND/kg, depending on the type."

Although unripe durians fetch low prices, reducing income, most durian growers in the villages of Da Tro, La Day, and Da Kim are "not too worried" because they had already harvested the first crop, or in some cases, two crops, resulting in high revenue. Therefore, overall, durian growers still made a high profit this year.

Thanks to the stable income from durian, many households in La Dạ have invested in advanced farming methods such as organic farming and the use of automatic drip irrigation systems, as seen in some models in the villages of Đa Tro, La Dày, and Đaguri... combining durian production with ecotourism . Durian orchards are opened to tourists for visits, experiences, and fruit tasting, not only providing supplementary income but also contributing to promoting the local durian brand...

Source: https://baolamdong.vn/sau-rieng-o-la-da-rot-gia-do-suong-com-392125.html