It’s that time of the year again, when Davao City celebrates the abundance of harvest and richness of culture, which will never be complete without the city’s most iconic king fruit—the Durian.
With the Kadayawan Festival fast-approaching, Davaoeños might have noticed a decline in this year’s harvest, as global warming take its toll on agriculture.
Candelario Miculob, president of the Durian Industry Council of Davao said in his speech during the Durian Festival at SM Lanang Premier on Friday, that the normal agricultural preparation takes place during the month of March to May for its hot weather ample for cultivation of the Durian Fruits.
Unfortunately, instead of the usual hot weather, it had rain frequently during the expected months of preparation, drastically affecting the produce and extending the season to September and October.
Miculob, appealed to the local consumers to temporarily endure the increased prices of durian this nearing Kadayawan Festival.
He revealed that despite the shortage, the local market demands and exports have also increased, leaving a limited allocation of the produce for our local consumers.
He assured the public that the prices shall gradually decrease in the coming months.
Earlier he told reporters of a steady decline in the volume of durian harvest in the region, which is made up of the four Davao provinces, Compostela Valley and this city.
Citing a report from the Philippine Statistics Authority, Miculob said that in 2013, durian production in the region dropped to 70,064 metric tons from the previous year’s because farms were ravaged by Typhoon Pablo.
Nevertheless, this unexpected late-fruiting did not hinder the Durian Festival from ever taking place this year.
Davaoeños who were present in the Durian Festival, remained grateful in celebrating the significance of the Durian Fruit, munching from one variety to the other, with wide smiles on their faces, full stomachs, and satisfied hearts.
