ISKANDAR PUTERI, Johor's durian farming sector has seen significant growth in the number of farmers, cultivated area, and fruit production over the past two years. State Agriculture, Agro-based Industry, and Rural Development Committee chairman, Datuk Zahari Sarip, highlighted that the number of durian farmers increased from 31,500 in 2022 to 34,650 in 2023, with cultivated area expanded from 19,979.3 hectares to 20,275.6 hectares for the same period. "Durian production rose from 138,945.5 metric tons in 2022 to 148,365 metric tons in 2023, surpassing the state's set KPI target of 141,862 metric tons by 2027. "Johor remains the leading durian producer, with Tangkak being the highest-producing district," he said, addressing a question from Ee Chin Li (PH - Tangkak) during today's State Legislative Assembly sitting. Zahari (BN-Buloh Kasap) stated that the government is working to enhance durian collection and processing centres to ensure consistent quantity and quality of the fruit, noting that there are c urrently 39 private collection centres and seven processing centres in the state. Last year, the Johor Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (FAMA) recorded 47.38 million metric tons of durian exports from the state. He added that the authority manages a small-scale durian collection and processing centre in Tangkak. "This year, the state government plans to upgrade the facilities and technology at the FAMA durian collection and processing centre, making it a hub for durians from Tangkak, Muar, and Segamat. "The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security has approved an allocation of RM2 million to enhance the Tangkak centre. "Previously, the centre could only process two metric tons of durian per day and store up to 22 metric tons of durian pulp. With the upgrade, the centre's frozen durian processing capacity will increase to approximately 12 metric tons per day, 360 metric tons per month, and 4,320 metric tons per year," he elaborated. Source: BERNAMA News Agency