WHY THAILAND LEADING EXPORTER FOR TROPICAL FRUIT?

WHY THAILAND is the leading exporter fir durian, mangosteen and other tropical fruits in the world?. It was a long line question asked by many fruit growers in Malaysia since I was at young age joining the agriculture department. I manage to visit Thailand few times especially during fruit season to study some facts about their tropical fruit industry and their marketing strategy applied. However normally any social gathering in Thailand is showered with fruit. Not with endless cups of coffee as Malaysian get us to it but with baskets of mangosteen, rambutan, longan, lamut or lychee. And of course durian fruit if only to try me out. Europeans reputedly detest the strong-smelling ‘King of Fruits’. Many happen to like it for Asian and earn both admiration and disappointment. Thai people also Malaysian and Indonesian not only devour fruit but they are also good at growing it. Through my regular visits to a friendly family of orchard owners In Malaysia and Thailand everybody are lucky to gain some insight in the expertise of the fruit farmers in kampong and orchard area. This article in blog "Anim Agriculture Technology" I rewrite an article about the question why Thailand able to lead for export of durian, mangosteen and other tropical fruit in this region.

The fruit growing industry in Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia are long history. There are more than three generations to gather in the huge shed adjacent to the farmers house, amidst fans, vehicles, machinery, goats and cooking pots. While the food gets prepared many youngsters try out some motorbike, babies are being cuddled, and business is discussed. Typical conversation topics such as how the pro's and con's of certain fertilizers with the newest varieties of durian and the best of lubricants and/or the hiring of laborers from neighbouring  country such as from Cambodia or Laos. Sometimes many of the salesman is invited for a demonstration of a gardening tool; neighbours, all fruit farmers, are invited. Sometimes the entire family jumps into their pick-ups to visit a prosperous garden in the vicinity. Of course to try the fruit, but also to discuss the growing method with the owner. In their lives, it is fruit that counts and they derive great honour from improving the taste, the shape, the smell and the yield. In Thailand at the eastern province Chanthaburi and bordered by the Gulf of Thailand and short mountain ranges, has the favorable soil and climate to grow an abundance of fruits. It has become one of Thailand’s major sources of durian, rambutan, mangosteen, salak, longkong, banana and longan. Export is booming. Every year, hundreds of new fruit purchasing depots spring up in the region, often run by Chinese traders. During the fruit season, April to June, these places are bustling with activity. An endless parade of fully loaded pick-ups provides a continuous supply. Work is done with impressive efficiency; quality is checked on the spot, fruits are instantly packed in boxes and loaded onto large container trucks, while the drivers take a nap in their hammock before they head to China.

The road network through Laos has seen major improvements to facilitate the Chinese customers’ longing for the tasty tropical fruits. Transport by road is not cheaper than by sea, but much faster, an indispensable factor for perishable goods. By road the south of China is reached in two or three days, by sea it takes ten days. Since the China ASEAN Free Trade Agreement came into force in 2003, eliminating import tariffs on fruits and vegetables, the growth in Thailand’s exports of fruits to China escalated from below 10% a year to over 90% a year in both trade volume and value.2 Besides China, major customers for fresh Thai fruit are Indonesia, Malaysia, Laos, Vietnam, Singapore, Taiwan, Japan and Korea.3 Fruit strategy The intensified export of tropical fruits has left its mark on the production, harvesting and marketing of fruits. Some marks are intentional. The ‘Fruit Strategy’ of the Thai Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives emphasizes raising the quality of the fruits and encouraging farmers to produce according to internationally recognized certifications like GAP (Good Agricultural Practice). Hence, with the help of research institutes and mainly through local cooperatives4 , fruit farmers are instructed in production methods that are environmentally friendly and deliver better yields. But some marks are ability unintentional and unwanted. The influx of foreign traders, who buy crops straight from the farmer, has been beneficial to the growers, because they gain easy access to international markets without losing money to middlemen. But the local fruit traders now have a hard time to compete, especially since some foreign traders start selling on the local markets. This is illegal under the Foreign Business Act, but by appointing a Thai nominee owner, a foreign firm appears being Thai-owned. According to the Bangkok Post, of the 100 fruit wholesale operations in Chanthaburi 60% are owned by foreigners or have a Thai as nominee owner. To tackle this problem, the Commerce Ministry has launched the so-called ‘Chanthaburi model’. Foreign traders have to register with the Agriculture Department if they intend to buy fruit straight from farmers. The fruits they buy must comply with the GAP standards and the contract with the local farmers must be ‘fair’. 

For buying and selling in Thailand many of them in which they need approval from the Commerce Ministry. Public relations The Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives has also set guidelines to launch public relations campaigns for the promotion of Thai fruit. As a result, not only the fruit markets are bustling, so is the ‘market’ of seminars, conferences, trade partner matching fairs, field trips and fruit festivals. In March this year, when orchards started showing their promising fruits, the provincial administration of Chanthaburi and Chinese traders from the Guangxi autonomous region met to discuss the distributors’ hurdles and suggestions for better trading opportunities. Huge volumes are at stake, as in 2015 alone Guangxi purchased about 30,000 tons of fruit from the cooperatives in Chanthaburi. In an occasion of Chanthaburi hosted an international symposium on durian and other humid tropical fruits reported that some 200 participants from Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Japan, Australia, USA and Thailand discussed topics like biodiversity, breeding, production, processing and marketing. On a less serious and more festive level, during the fruit season one can stumble across a festival anywhere in the region, where passers-by can eat as much fruit as they like. The places are always crowded with people who are so unfortunate not to have their own orchard. Fruit trade is dominated by women One aspect of the Thai fruit trade that does not stop striking is the female dominance. Women buy crops from dispersed orchards, they check the quality of fruit offered in the back of pick-up trucks, they negotiate the price, and they carry the calculators and the bulging money bags. Men are for the hard work: loading and unloading, packing, weighing, carrying. Women scrupulously watch the scales, take decisions, calculate and hand out the bank notes.  Women farmers is the one who decides which new plots of land are bought and which son or son-in-law is allowed to try his skills on it. And of course she is the one who assembles and distributes the earnings among her offspring. It is also a lady fruit planter and trader who heads a 7,000 odd member cooperative in the neighbouring province of Trat. Focused on exporting fresh rambutan to Vietnam as stated are experimented with cold storage methods at the lowest possible costs and set up a joint venture with Vietnamese businessmen. They managed to slash the cold storage costs to less than a third. At the processing plants the best quality fruits are chosen, rinsed in water, covered with a moist, fibrous sheet and packed in ice. With this process the rambutan reaches the Vietnamese markets, 1,000 kilometres away, in a fresh state. Currently this determined woman is spurring the 

Thai government to help small exporters by shortening the lengthy customs procedures at the border. Harvesting time Whereas in Europe harvesting time is a farmer’s race against the clock, my Thai friends are utterly relaxed when their orchards show branches burdened with ripe fruit. As has become common practice in the region, their entire crop has already been sold. They only have to wait for the Chinese trader, who brings in his own crew to pick, pack and transport the result of a year’s hard work. So, time enough to discuss what newest model sedan is on the wish list. Meanwhile dessert is offered the salakon-ice and home-made durian paste. Actually, I would die for soursop. But that is way beyond the preference of the sweet-minded Thai. No real worries though, I have some trees growing in my own garden. Facts and figures about some Thai fruit The source of most of this information and all three tables is Fruit production, marketing and research and development system in Thailand. Durian (Durio zibethinus) Thailand is the world's largest durian exporter, with roughly 90% of the international market share. Second and third, but way behind, come Malaysia and Indonesia. There are over 100 cultivars in Thailand, but the most common is ‘Mon thong’. In 2012, 371,946 MT of durian was exported, mainly as fresh fruit (94%), with China, Hong Kong and Taiwan as major buyers. Frozen durian goes to the USA, China and Australia. Most of the durian paste finds its way to Russia, Hong Kong and Singapor. Thailand is also one of the world’s largest producers and exporters of mangosteen, lovingly called ‘the Queen of Fruits’. Supposedly that pet name derives from Queen Victoria’s offering 100 pounds sterling for anyone who could bring her a fresh sample. The anecdote comes from the famous American plant explorer David Fairchild, but nobody knows whether it is a tale or a fact. In 2012, 89% of the Thai production was exported, mainly as fresh fruit. Most important buyers are Vietnam, China and Hong Kong. Thanks.

The majority of rambutan is consumed in the domestic market, due to short shelf life. Only 5% of the total production (334,087 MT in 2012) is exported. Main cultivar rambutan in Thailand is ‘Rongrian’, followed by ‘Si Chomphu’. Export consists for 54% of fresh fruit, mostly to United Arab Emirates, Malaysia and Cambodia. Canned rambutan (17% of export) goes to China, Myanmar and Malaysia, whereas rambutan stuffed with pineapple in syrup (29% of export) is most popular in USA, Japan and Germany. In 2012 Thailand produced 876,269 MT of longan, of which 94% was exported. The main commercial cultivar is ‘E-Dor’ (over 500,000 MT each year). Longan requires low temperatures to induce flowering, so it was initially grown in the northern region. But flower induction technology made longan production possible in other regions. Longan is sold fresh and dried, and processed into longan powder, baked longan and longan sugar. Salak (Salacca edulis) Salak, native to Indonesia but grown around southeast Asia, is available all year round. Market information hardly exists. The fruit is relatively unknown outside of Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, China and Thailand. Most common cultivars in Thailand are Rakam and Sala. In order to boost recognition of salak in domestic and international trade, the Thai Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives has begun to set standards for quality and safety in 2013. In 2012 Thailand produced 122,902 MT of longkong. The bulk is for the domestic market; only 5% is exported due to short shelf life, remote production sites and attached insects (scorpions!). In 2012, the export of fresh longkong went mainly to Cambodia, Philippines and Vietnam. Much research is put into controlling fungal diseases, postharvest treatment and storing fruit to enhance the export of longkong. Thanks.

By,

M Anem,

Senior Agronomist,

Kangar, Perlis,

Malaysia.

(July 2021).

Posted from
PHAK , Aiir Keroh,
Melaka.