SERDANG: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak admitted that he played an instrumental role in getting the King of Fruits - the durian - exported to China.
In his speech at the National Farmers and Fishermen Day, here today, he recounted his visit to Chow Kit, where he saw durian being sold for only RM1 each.
This, he said, was during the fruit’s its peak season.
However, now, he said durian’s such as the 'Musang King' variety is sold for more than RM100 per kg thanks to the new market being opened in China.
"I want to tell all of you here, that I was the one responsible for getting approval and permission for durian to be exported to China," he said to the crowd of more than 1,000 farmers, fishermen and visitors.
Citing the meetings he had with China's top leaders, Najib said he had sought for permission to import the fruit there.
"Today we are able to export durian to China.
"This has led to many durian entrepreneurs exporting durian to China," he said.
Najib said he was told by a durian entrepreneur at a recent programme organised by the International Trade and Industry Ministry, that he did not have enough supply due to the high demand.
"This is why it is vital to have a global strategy. We cannot just sell our goods at markets one or two kilometres away from our homes.
"We must ensure that the global market is a market for all of us," he said.
Najib said once Malaysia is part of the global supply chain, those who benefit from it are the farmers and fishermen and it was this reason why there is need to maintain good relations with the world's economic super powers.
The National Farmers and Fishermen Day is celebrated every year on Aug 6 since 1975 when it was officially launched by Najib’s father and second Prime Minister Tun Abdul Razak.
This year's celebration is held for four days, from Sept 28 to Oct 1 at The Malaysia Agro Exposition Park, Serdang.
Organised by the Agricultural and Agro-based Industry Ministry, the events is expected to welcome nearly one million visitors and transactions up to RM30 million with 600 exhibitors.