Nearly 2,000 durian containers in limbo as labs pause testing

Le Anh Trung, chairman of the Dak Lak Durian Association, told VnExpress that the issue began on Oct. 11, when facilities responsible for chemical residue testing for durian exports stopped accepting samples.

They have also not released the results for previous batches, preventing businesses from getting the certifications needed for export.

Trung said few facilities can test for both Auramine O, a carcinogenic dye, and cadmium, a heavy metal. Most labs can handle only one of the two, even though both tests are required.

As a result, the testing process has fallen behind just as the durian harvest peaks in Dak Lak, a major producing province in the Central Highlands, he added.

The stranded shipments are at risk of spoilage and cracked shells, which could reduce their quality, according to the association.

The pause has also forced factories and cooperatives to stop buying fruit from growers, driving down prices.

The price of grade A durians at traders has dropped from over VND100,000 (US$3.8) to around VND80,000 per kilogram.

Thousands of tons of ripe fruit remain unsold while farmers still have to bear the costs of plant care, transportation and storage.

Durians harvested and piled up by farmers in Dak Lak Province, Central Highlands, on Oct. 25, 2025, as businesses and traders halted purchases. Photo by Linh Dan

The association has urged the Ministry of Agriculture and Environment and the provincial People’s Committee to intervene and resume testing.

It proposed prioritizing export-related testing and temporarily authorizing qualified local facilities to handle the work to ease the burden on central laboratories during the peak season.

The ministry held a meeting with several labs and specialized units on Friday afternoon to resolve the bottleneck. That evening, some facilities began releasing results for previously delayed shipments, helping clear part of the backlog of containers.

However, new samples have yet to be accepted and businesses are still awaiting further guidance.

Meanwhile, durian exports remain under heavy pressure as each day of delay could lead to hundreds of tons of fruit spoiling and damage Vietnam’s reputation with trade partners.

Trung said a solution is urgently needed to maintain testing capacity during the peak season and prevent recurrences.

Vietnam exported around 451,000 tons of fresh durians worth $1.52 billion in the first eight months of 2025, down 24% in volume and 25% in value from a year ago, according to customs data.

Frozen durian shipments amounted to over 58,000 tons worth $265 million, up 67% and 127% year-on-year, respectively.

Exports of the fruit totaled nearly $1.8 billion during the period, a nearly 16% decline from a year earlier.

The association said it is compiling data from businesses to propose measures that not only address immediate difficulties but also establish a stable testing mechanism for the durian industry in the long term, as the fruit becomes one of Vietnam’s key agricultural exports.