JITRA: Durian fever has returned and struck the district with traders struggling to meet the surge in demand for the pungent fruit.
Trader Mohd Azizi Azizan, 28, said five tonnes of “durian kampung” sold at his Fresh Fruit Stall in Kepala Batas near here were snapped up in less than 30 minutes yesterday.
Azizi said durian lovers from all over the rice-bowl state, as well as those from outside Kedah, flocked to his stall to savour the fruit, which he sells for between RM5 and RM8 per kilogramme.
“I sourced the durian kampung from Balik Pulau, Penang and Batu Kurau, Perak, which are facing a durian glut.
“I never thought there would be an increase in the demand for durians since sales dropped significantly during the fasting month of Ramadan (between May and June).
“I have started to order additional durians since the demand for the fruit has returned and it is growing,” he said.
Mohd Azizi added that there were customers who were willing to wait for almost two hours until the next batch of durians arrived at his stall.
“Customers were willing to wait for hours until the next lorry transporting durians arrives at my stall. These customers wanted to pick their own durians.
“Apart from eating the fruits, customers can also try my durian-infused dishes such as pulut durian (sticky rice with durian) and cendol pulut,” he said, adding that he also increased his stock of sticky rice by 15kg due to the increase in demand.
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