Grades B and C sell for between 195,000 and 200,000 VND and between 100,000 and 140,000 VND.
Prices of Ri 6 durian remain stable at 160,000 VND for quality A and 70,000 VND for quality C.
Hoang, a farmer in Ben Tre province, said he was surprised to see prices soar.
He sold one ton of C-grade Monthong durian for VND110,000 per kilogram and still has two tons of off-season fruit left to harvest next week, he said.
“I have never seen prices this high. Over the past three days, many traders have offered to buy my [grade C] durian for 130,000-140,000 VND, but I haven’t sold it yet.
Lan in Can Tho town is also besieged by traders, who said out-of-season Monthong durian has seen several price hikes this year due to dwindling supply.
This year, his family was only able to harvest three tons in the off-season, compared to four tons last year, he said.
“Climate change, salinity intrusion and nutrient deficiencies have all led to reduced yields.”
Agreeing with this, a representative of the Van Hoa durian company said that Monthong’s durian production had decreased by 20 to 30 percent this year.
“Supply is very scarce, with Grade A prices reaching a high of VND230,000 per kilogram. And even then, they are not readily available for purchase. »
Nguyen Hang, a trader in Tien Giang province, said they could only get five to 15 tonnes of fruit per day this year, compared to 30 to 40 tonnes last year.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, saltwater intrusion in the Mekong Delta has exceeded normal levels this year and is also a major problem for durian farmers.
Dang Phuc Nguyen, secretary general of the Vietnam Fruit and Vegetable Association, expects supply to recover in May and prices to stabilize.
Vietnam exported nearly 39,000 tonnes of durian worth $172 million in the first two months of the year, almost double the figure for the same period last year, according to the General Department of Customs.
The Department of Plant Protection recently said the country was close to signing a memorandum of understanding to officially export frozen durian to China.
This could potentially increase annual exports by 30%, Nguyen said.
