Malaysia’s state of Penang has urged its durian growers to register for a tracking system to curb the spread of counterfeit versions of the prickly, pungent fruit from June 1, according to Bernama.
The state plans to make the “Track and Trace” system mandatory for its 200 durian farmers as it seeks to restore consumer confidence in the fruit, State Agrotechnology, Food Security and Cooperative Development Committee’s Fahmi Zainol was cited as saying.
About 60 growers have committed to using the system, which involves tagging the durians with a QR code that, once scanned, allows each fruit to be traced back to its farm, he said.
The plan came about after local growers complained about the misuse and misrepresentation of Penang durians, he added.
The fruit, with its creamy-like flesh and powerful aroma, is popular in Malaysia and much of Southeast Asia. Malaysia exports durians to countries including China, and expects outbound shipments to rise to 1.8 billion ringgit ($550 million) by 2030, according to a 2024 Bernama article.
