SEBERANG PERAI, Aug 9 — Penang aims to have 75 per cent of its durian farms registered under its Track-and-Trace system by the fruiting season next year.
State Agrotechnology, Food Security and Cooperative Development Committee chairman Fahmi Zainol said the Agriculture Department has been visiting farms to explain the system since it was rolled out in June.
“We are approaching the larger farms in each district to explain the system to them and get them to register their durians to use it,” he said at a durian outreach programme in Rain Tree Farm here today.
He is upbeat that it will be easier to meet each farm owner with the durian season now ended.
“We hope to get at least 75 per cent of the farms to register under this system by the next durian season next year,” he said.
Developed with Mimos Sdn Bhd, the Track and Trace system uses a smart tag to provide real-time tracking of a durian’s origins, certifications and status, ensuring authenticity and transparency for consumers.
Since June, about 40 per cent of farms have signed up, Fahmi said, adding that Penang has hundreds of farms on both the island and mainland, so reaching all of them will take time.
Larger farms are the priority as they are the ones exporting durians, Fahmi added.
On new durian varieties, he said the state is encouraging farms to register high-quality durian kampung.
“I’ve tasted some durian kampung that are more delicious than Or Chi but the durian farm owner didn’t want to register it,” he said, using the Hokkien name for the Black Thorn variety.
To register a variety, a farm must have at least five trees of that type, but many still refuse to do so despite meeting the requirement.
“Some of these farms have more than five trees of the same variety of durian kampung but they are reluctant to register it,” Fahmi said, adding that such varieties would add to Penang’s growing list of registered durians.
