PHILIPPINES: PhilFruits Association to hold 23rd National Fruit Symposium

The PhilFruits Association Inc. will be holding the 23rd National Fruit Symposium with the theme: “Let’s Make It Fruitful All Over”, on October 19-23, 2015 at Hotel Elizabeth, Baguio City, Philippines.

VIETNAM: Unseasonal fruits bring high profit to farmers in Mekong Delta

Farmers in the Mekong delta are harvesting early fruits at high price. Farmer Le Van Ngoan in Tra Vinh’s Cau Ke District said that early harvested mangosteen from his two acres of lands of mangosteen was sold at the price of VND115,000 (USD 5.30) per kilogram, making him get high profit.

AUSTRALIA: Star fruit thrives after Tropical Cyclone Marcia hit, destroying other crops

While many fruit crops were decimated by Tropical Cyclone Marcia in February the unusual fruit, also known as the carambola, seems to be thriving.

SUDAN: Mixed farming system for banana export to Europe

The Director of Horticultural Sector at the Ministry of Agriculture Dr. Badreldin Al-Sheikh revealed that a 70-acre mixed farming agroforesty system will begin development in Singa, Sennar that will cultivate mahogany with banana within the framework of the Horticultural Export Project of bananas to Europe.

CHINA: Malaysian durian ‘Musang King’ is a hit

The ‘Musang King’ durian from Malaysia is much liked and highly demanded by the people in China and in 2013, the fruit was awarded China’s television stations’ CCTV 10 Best Agriculture Award, says Sean Lee, a Malaysian who runs a cafe chain in China.

MALAYSIA: Farmers to grow MD2 variety pineapple

Sixty farmers in Kota Marudu will be the first in Sabah to grow a pineapple variety produced through tissue culture technology under a pilot project, after receiving 20,000 seedlings of the MD2 variety, Monday.

INDIA: Lucrative price and bumper production make litchi traders happy

The litchi growers are happy now following a bumper production with lucrative prices of the delicious, juicy and fleshy seasonal fruit that has already appeared everywhere in the city.

MALAYSIA: No Artificial Colouring In Durians, Ministry Assures

“The ministry is confident that durians offered to the public and tourists are of the best variety and do not contain anything that would taint the good reputation of our durians,” said Dr. Junaida Lee Abdullah, Deputy Secretary General of the Ministy of Tourism and Culture.

PHILIPPINES: Banana exporters want say in China talks

Banana growers have appealed to the government to give them a seat in ongoing trade talks between the Philippines and China as well as with other countries where the fruit is exported.

AUSTRALIA: Bees are not the top mango pollinators

Native flies, not bees, have come out as one of the top pollinators of mango trees according to a new study by a University of New England researcher.

VIETNAM: Fruit, vegetable exports grow in first five months

The country exported nearly 900,000 tonnes of fruit in the past five months, with dragon fruit taking the lead with 350,000 tonnes, followed by watermelons (250,000 tonnes), longans (110,000 tonnes) and bananas (30,000 tonnes).

INDIA: Growers fret over mango glut, Bihar villagers rejoice

A bumper yield of mango crop in Bihar, combined with early ripening of the fruit due to the severe heat this summer, has left growers despairing over huge potential losses, instead of profits they were hoping for.

MALAYSIA: Rambutan seeds to prevent diabetes

Two undergraduates from an Indonesian varsity have developed an innovative way of preventing diabetes, by using rambutan seeds.

AUSTRALIA: Northern Territory banana replanting progresses

The Banana Freckle Eradication Program has officially moved into Phase Two, with the focus now on replanting in 2016.

VIETNAM: Australia imports Vietnamese lychee for the first time

The first consignments of Vietnamese lychees to Australia, weighing three metric tons, have arrived in Melbourne as Vietnam are trying to reduce the dependence on China as its main buyer of the fruit.

INDIA: Plantain saree is the new black

Conventionally, the fibre of plantain stems has for long been considered to be of no use. But a women’s self-help group in Chennai have proven that plantain fibre can be used to weave high-quality sarees.

SUDAN: Bit Badi and Sanusia mango varieties prove popular in festival

The Gardening Society organized the 20th Mango Festival at Coral Hotel in Khartoum on the 2nd week of June, providing a forum for mango stakeholders such as farmers, producers, exporters, manufacturers, the experienced, and researchers, as well as provided an opportunity for farmers to proffer their products and to know the producing companies.

VIETNAM: First Hung Yen longan batch to be shipped to US

According to Deputy Director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD), Doan Thi Chai, the province has more than 20 hectares of longan granted regional codes for export to the US.

CAMBODIA: Tycoon hopes to cash in on bananas

Tokyo-based conglomerate All Nippon Airways Trading (ANA) is in talks with the Mong Reththy Group (MRG), to establish a banana plantation with plans to export to Japan, the Cambodian agriculture tycoon said on Friday.

PERU: Lima to host 8th World Avocado Congress

With Peru’s presence in the global avocado market on the rise, the nation’s capital is set to play host to the 8th World Avocado Congress. The event will take place Sept. 13-18 in at the Westin Hotel in San Isidro, Lima’s financial district.

STUDY: Avocado compound holds promise for treating leukemia

According to Prof. Paul Spagnuolo of the University of Waterloo in Canada, there is a compound in avocados – called avocatin B – that holds promise for a new treatment for acute myeloid leukemia.

JAPAN: Man buys watermelon for $2,800

The broker was one of several people bidding at the wholesale market in Asahikawa City. At the year’s first auction, 84 Densuke watermelon were for sale. Consumers prize the variety, from the town of Toma, for its extra sweet taste.

USA: CDFA warns farmers against guava fruit fly in California

A portion of Los Angeles County has been placed under quarantine for the guava fruit fly (GFF) following the detection of eight adult GFF within the City of Long Beach. The quarantine area in Los Angeles County measures 80 square miles, bordered on the north by Southern Avenue; on the south by E. Stearns Street; on the west by Central Avenue; and on the east by Norwalk Boulevard.

THAILAND: German demand rises for Thai pomelos

The Department of Agriculture (DOA) has been trying to improve the quality of Kao Nam Pueng pomelos, due to an increase in German demand. The fruit has a color similar to honey, while having a sweeter and crunchier consistency compared to other varieties.

PAKISTAN: 25% increase in mango exports possible

Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FPCCI) Standing Committee on Horticulture and Agriculture Production Chairman Ahmad Jawad said that value addition helps to widen market scope and reduce post harvest loses which gives the product a higher value.

NEW ZEALAND: Seeka’s commitment to innovation drives top avocado returns

Based on publicly reported returns from the leading exporters, Seeka has outperformed the industry in both of the past two seasons. Seeka’s avocado growers have been paid out an average orchard gate return (OGR) of $16.64 per export tray for 2014/15.

THAILAND: Ministry of Commerce addressing Hong Kong’s ban on Thai durian imports

Thai officials have explained local farmers’ practice of soaking durian in turmeric solutions to Hong Kong authorities after the latter imposed a ban on Thai durian following the detection of turmeric use.

USA: Low-altitude images allow early detection of avocado disease

Low-altitude aerial images can detect laurel wilt, a devastating avocado disease, giving growers an early way to identify diseased trees and perhaps help reduce losses to the $100 million-a-year economic impact avocados provide Florida.