Fama mulls setting up durian processing centre in Sarawak

KUCHING: The Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (Fama) is mulling over opening a durian processing centre in the state.

Fama Sarawak director Paza Dan said the centre would help to overcome the problem of excess durian during the durian season and give local entrepreneurs an opportunity to export durian products.

“Currently, Fama has opened seven of these centres in West Malaysia, and in Sarawak, Fama is thinking of opening the centre at the Fama Operations Centre along Jalan Meranek, Samarahan which currently is a centre for distributing agricultural products.

“We are planning to upgrade this centre with frozen durian processing facilities and it is expected to be ready by next year. The processing centre here will help to increase the country’s export value to at least RM36.5 billion in 2020,”

Paza said when met during the Fama ‘Eat Local Fruits’ campaign at Medan Niaga Satok here yesterday.

Elaborating further, he said the technology could freeze from 18 degrees Celsius and below to control microorganisms from spoiling food, which would extend the longevity of durian fruits to up to six months while extracted durian seeds could last up to two months.

The ‘Eat Local Fruits’ campaign was a success as the local community thronged Medan Niaga Satok to enjoy the spread of local fruits including durians, mangosteens, jackfruit, ‘dabai’ and bananas for only RM5.

“We want to encourage the public, especially the younger generation, to enjoy the local fruits and this is the first time we have held such a programme during the fruit season,” Paza enthused.

Visitors to the programme were entertained to performances by the Intan Buskers Group, as well as demonstrations and fruit carving competitions organised by Fama.

Fama has processed over 4,000 metric tonnes of durians in the seven processing centres to meet the large demand from overseas market, especially China, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Australia.