A PROCESSING and cold storage facility for durian will soon rise in Calinan, Davao City.

The P12-million facility, which is expected to boost durian farmers' production and marketability of their produce, is set to open in mid-April, the regional office of the Department of Agriculture (DA) and The Durian Council of Davao City (DCDC) said.

The facility aims to provide solution to the growing concern for the declining number of local durian growers in Davao Region, according to DA.

Candelario Miculob, DCDC chair, said a number of durian farmers are deciding to cut down their durian trees to make room for other high-value crops.

But he said the problem lies not in the incapability of the farmers to achieve production targets to meet the market demand, but rather in the inability of the growers and processors to properly distribute the products to the growing market.

A solution to this, according to Miculob, "is to encourage our local growers and processors to continue and strengthen the production" to meet the market demands, particularly outside of Davao Region.

A particular example of the increasing demand for the fruit products is China's recent inquiry for Davao to produce 300 tons of durian per month.

One major step to achieve this is Davao City's support in building a cold storage and processing plant in Barrio Cawayan, Calinan, within the 14-hectare property owned by Miculob.

The plant is said to completely mechanize the fruit processing and packing using state-of-the-art machinery dedicated to produce blast-frozen and vacuum sealed durian meat and other products.

Miculod said this will, in turn, allow the city to manufacture and distribute these products in the market.