On October 20, 2018, the Malaysian brand, Royal Mas, will hold a special durian event in Shanghai. FreshPlaza interviewed Royal Mas's executive chairman Datuk Vincent Chan about the purpose and format of the event. He said that the promotion of Malaysian durians may be very common in Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia, but it is definitely the first time that such an event has been held in China. Because most of the durians consumed domestically come from Thailand, this event is also a very rare promotion opportunity for the brand..
Chinese durian lovers are already familiar with the Malaysian Musang King durian, and the little durian also gave them an opportunity to learn about other varieties from Malaysia. The Malaysian durian, now known to consumers in the Chinese market, is roughly the same as the Musang King durian and the Sultan King, but there are actually more than 200 durian varieties officially registered in Malaysia, so Datuk Vincent Chan thinks this is a good opportunity for the average consumer to become aware of other varieties. At this event, the little durian will bring you the D198 (Jinfeng), D101, D13 (Golden Bag) and the well-known D197 (Musang King) and D24 (Sultan King).
In addition to the invited partners, the Malaysian trade ambassador and the Chinese and Malaysian media, the attendees of the event will be selected in the form of public ticket sales, with a quota of around 80 people for a cost of 399 yuan. Along with the interactive lottery and the wonderful music, the participants will taste the different varieties of Malaysian durian, and of course the the aromatic fruit puree. In addition to the frozen durian pulp, the little durian also wants to pursue more cooperation in baking and promote the products such as the little durian puree.
Datuk Vincent Chan also estimated the prospects of Malaysian durian in the Chinese market for the next year or two. He believes that Malaysian durian has great potential in the Chinese market, and the current durian market is only at its beginning. The durians currently circulating in the market are mostly the Monthong variety of Thailand. This single variety has divided a large part of the profits in the Chinese market every year. Due to the restrictions of the China-Malaysia agreement, the durians in Malaysia can only export a part of the puree and frozen fruit each year. However, according to the latest news released by the General Administration of Customs on August 20, during the visit to Malaysia by Prime Minister Tun Mahathir, the leaders of the two countries signed the "Protocol on the Requirements for Inspection and Quarantine of Frozen Durian in Malaysia".
According to the provisions of the Protocol, in addition to frozen durian pulp, Malaysian frozen shelled durian that meets the requirements for inspection and quarantine is about to enter the Chinese market. After 2-3 months, the final approval of the protocol will be passed, and the brand will also introduce liquid nitrogen durian. Datuk Vincent Chan is now actively contacting various platforms to promote liquid nitrogen and frozen durian flesh. He believes that compared to durians in Thailand and Vietnam, Malaysian durian will sooner or later be in this market because of its unique taste and excellent quality. In addition to the cat mountain king durian that has already established itself in the Chinese market, other Malaysian unique varieties of durians, such as the top of the mountain XO, Jinbao, Jinfeng, also have the opportunity to shine in the Chinese market.
Datuk Vincent Chan also believes that Thai durian and Malaysian durian should be complementary rather than competing because they have different positions in the same target group. The reason why the Musang King is famous is because it has a textured rich flavor. The fruit of the old tree is rich and full of bitterness, and it is difficult for people who cannot adapt to this bitter taste. Most consumers who like Musang King are converted from eating durian in Thailand. Some of them have tasted local durians in Malaysia, and they think that the gentle taste of Thai durian is no longer enough for them. Musang King can satisfy the needs of those who pursue a more "heavy taste" of durian.
Malaysian durian has a small production season from February to March every year, and a high season from July to August. Consumers can taste fresh whole durian in these two periods, except for these two seasons of frozen durian. The consumer group is different. Fresh durian and frozen durian flesh happen to provide uninterrupted supply opportunities for 12 months a year. Malaysian durian will deepen and expand its influence in some second and third tier cities. Durian lovers also have more opportunities to taste the durian varieties other than the Cat Musang King and the Sultan King.