Saturday, August 21, 2004 The king of fruit can make kings of farmers By Jenny Grace Molbog-Mendoza
DURIAN is not just the king of the fruits. It could also make kings of farmers, if they only have the drive to hone a moneymaking farm.
"Durian business is very profitable," Roman B. Armenio, senior agriculturist of the Department of Agriculture 11, said during an interview.
Armenio added that in every P6.20 per kilogram cost of production of durian fruit, a durian investor can get a net profit of P7 to P17 per kilogram.
As to the first two quarters of 2004, DA 11 has recorded 2,147 number of durian farmers in the region.
To date, Region 11 already has 16,725 bearing durian trees and 81,024 non-bearing durian trees.
"Ang varieties na mabenta ngayon ay puyat and arancillo," Armenio said. The Durian Industry Council recommends to the durian growers to focus on two durian varieties, so that, needed volume to supply the Luzon and Visayas markets will be produced.
"Ngayon kasi, kulang ang supply sa Luzon at Visayas," Armenio said. At present, DA 11 is drafting a road map, which is an analysis of the present and future status of the durian industry.
Get to know your durian
Kadayawan Festival will never be complete without the presence of the "king of Davao fruits". Every August, tourists, both local and international, flock to Davao just to witness the Kadayawan celebration of the Dabawenyos, and of course, to eat the undeniably delicious durian fruit.
Durian (Durio zibethinus Murr.) is native to the Philippines and is considered as one of the exotic fruits grown in the country, particularly in Region XI.
The Durian tree
A durian tree can grow as high as 40 meters. It starts to bear fruits at four years old. And by the time it reaches 10 years old, it can bear fruits as many as 150 each tree. Fruits are ready for harvest after 120 days.
Durian season is from July until September, and off-season is from November until April, although with the farm technologies and new breeds, durian is becoming a year-round fruit with the bulk of the harvest pouring down starting September.
Food composition
The edible portion or aril of the durian fruit depends on its variety or cultivar. On the average, the aril is only 26 percent of the fruit by weight, the rind is 60 percent, and seeds represent 14 percent of the fruit.
Durian is rich in carbohydrate, calcium, phosphorus, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, and ascorbic acid.
The seeds, which contain nearly pure starch, are claimed to be edible after boiling or roasting. It is also claimed, however, that the seeds contain a poisonous substance that causes shortness of breath.
Recommended varieties/cultivars
The success of durian farming relies mainly on the variety the farmer is producing. The National Seed Industry Council of the Department of Agriculture recommends 10 varieties.
Chanee
This variety came from Thailand, is said to be the first variety to have spread among the farmers. Its fruit is ovoid with a broad, obtuse tip and weighs from two to four kilograms. Its flesh is thick, golden yellow, sweet, and has a mild aroma. Its edible portion is 32 percent.
Mon Thong
Known as 'Golden Pillow', another variety from Thailand. It weighs from two to five kilograms. Its fruit is slightly elongated with a pointed tip. Its flesh is thick, golden yellow, sweet, and has a mild aroma. Its edible portion is 30 percent.
Alcon Fancy
This is a local variety. Its fruit is round and weighs about two kilograms. Its flesh is canary yellow, sweet and has slightly bitter taste, and mild aroma. Its edible portion is 34 percent.
Arancillo
Another local variety. Its fruit is ovoid. It weighs about two kilograms. Its flesh is mimosa yellow, firm, sweet, and creamy, and has a mild aroma. Its edible portion is 38 percent.
Atabrine
This local variety was named by farmer-scientist Severino Belviz of Calinan. The name atabrine means native. Its fruit is ellipsoidal. It weighs from two to three kilograms. Its flesh is maple yellow, sweet, and very glutinous with slightly bitter taste. Its edible portion is 25 percent.
Duyaya
This local variety was also named by Belviz. Duyaya is a combination of the names Durian and Biyaya. Its fruit is oblong. It weighs from two to four kilograms. Its flesh is thick, bright yellow, sweet, and has a mild aroma. Its edible portion is 32 percent.
GD 69
Another local variety. Its fruit is obvate and large. It weighs from two to two point five kilograms. Its flesh is yellow, firm, sweet, and has a mild aroma. Its edible portion is 45 percent.
Lacson Uno
Another local variety. Its fruit is obovate and large. It weighs from three to four kilograms. Its flesh is yellow, firm, sweet, and has a mild aroma. Its edible portion is 33 percent.
Mamer
This local variety was named after Mamerto Fernandez. Its fruit is ellipsoidal. It weighs from two to three kilograms. Its flesh is barium yellow, sweet, and glutinous. Its edible portion is 25 percent.
Puyat
Another local variety. Its fruit is big and cylindroidal. It weighs from two to four kilograms. Its flesh is chrome yellow, firm, sweet, soft, buttery, and has a mild aroma. Its edible portion is 40 percent.
To date, there are more than 24 durian varieties. Among these are the latayan, lacson 2, karnyaw (which means long stalk in Thailand), Malaysian D101, Malaysian D24, M-Dur 88, nanam (derived from the word 'malinamnam', which means delicious) and sulit (derived from the Filipino word 'sulit' which means "worth the price").
The newest variety is SMIARC no.2, named after Southern Mindanao Integrated Agricultural Research Center, which is a product of hybridization of the latayan and chanee varieties. (Source: Department of Agriculture's The Philippines Recommends for Durian manual)
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