Yeap Gaun Fong, the proprietor of 8321 Durian Plantation here, said this year’s harvest is likely to be 30% lower than last year’s.

“When the trees were flowering, the hot weather caused the flower buds to drop,” Yeap, 45, told Bernama.

“The hot weather is also the main reason why people eat less durian. Many customers who visit our stall buy only one or two fruit. They say the weather is too hot to consume too much durian.”

He said durian prices have dropped during the the past two weeks because of the lower demand.

“Two weeks ago, I sold grade A Musang King durians for RM75 per kg and now it is only RM50 per kg. Udang Merah durians were initially sold for RM50 per kg, and now it’s RM35 per kg.

“My ‘durian kampung’ is now sold at RM10 per kg compared with RM20 previously,” Yeap, who owns six durian estates across Penang, said.

With the durian season having just begun three weeks ago, he said, it is hard to predict whether this season will bring in a profit or not.

“We will have to wait until the middle or end of the season to know whether we are making a profit or loss this time around. There could be an increase in demand during the school holidays next week,” he said.