（InKunming Lexi）As the "king of fruits," a durian is popular in China's fruit market and among consumers, but its "drawback" is that it is too expensive. However, as the harvest season of tropical fruit arrives after we entered May, large quantities of durians are gradually on the market, and prices are becoming more affordable compared to the time when they were first sold.

On sale! A whole durian for less than 100 yuan

Durians were priced at around 100 yuan per kilogram at the beginning of April, but some of the prices were cut to 40 yuan per kilogram in fruit shops and supermarkets after the May Day holiday. It is now possible to get a whole durian for only around 100 yuan.

From May to August, durians are in their peak season for ripeness and sales, large amounts of durians have been coming into the market, and the trend of "high quality and low price" is expected to continue.

Thai durian exports expected to reach a new high by taking China-Laos Railway

Why are durians so cheap this year? Taking Thailand as an example, Thailand has over 200 durian varieties and is the country that exports the freshest durians in the world, as well as the country with the most fruit varieties allowed for import into China. Currently, it is the peak season for picking and selling durians in Thailand, and the majority of Thai durians are sold in China.

A Thai durians export market

According to Thai durian exporters, the time it takes to transport durians to China has been greatly reduced since Thai durians were transported via the China-Laos Railway this year. It took about 7 days by sea and about 5 days by road before, but durians can now be transported from Thailand to China's Kunming in just 3 days thanks to the China-Laos Railway. According to Thai media reports, the "Durian Train" from Thailand's Map Ta Phut to China's Guangzhou has broken the record for the fastest time it takes to transport fruit from Thailand to China, and the probability of damage during transport has also been significantly reduced.

According to statistics from the Thai Ministry of Commerce, China accounted for more than 96% of Thailand's total durian exports in 2022. With the help of the China-Laos Railway, it is expected that this year's Thai durian exports will reach a new high.

"Fruit Trains" on China-Laos Railway imported over 10,000 tons of fruit

Not just durians, there are also mangosteens, longans, mangoes, etc. With the arrival of the fruit harvest season in Southeast Asia, tropical fruits from many Southeast Asian countries, such as Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and Singapore, have entered their peak season. A large number of tropical fruits, such as Durians, jackfruits, mangosteens, longans, and grapefruits, began to appear on the market since April this year. There is a fruit train entering China via the China-Laos Railway every day and then heading to major cities such as Kunming, Chengdu, and Guangzhou. By the time of the May Day holiday this year, the China-Laos Railway had imported over 11,000 tons of tropical fruits, greatly enriching China's "fruit basket".

Imported fruits in the Mohan Railway Port

In December 2022, the China-Laos Railway was put into operation for a whole year, and with the introduction of a designated inspection area for imported fruits at the Mohan Railway Port in Yunnan, the China-Laos Railway officially has the ability to transport imported fruits all by rail.

Fresh durians from Thailand are transported by a dedicated cold-chain train all via the railway, and an increasing number of tropical fruits from Southeast Asia are being transported via the "Lancang-Mekong Express" international freight trains on the China-Laos Railway to arrive in Kunming.

Workers sort durians that come into China via the China-Laos railway.

This year's peak season for imported tropical fruits will continue until the end of June, with durians, mangosteens, longans, grapefruits, and other Southeast Asian specialty fruits expected to see a year-on-year increase in transport volume of over 50%.

Cold-chain trains help bring fresh tropical fruits to the dining table

Due to the short preservation time and high requirement for transport time of imported tropical fruits, the China Railway Kunming Group Co., Ltd. and the Mohan Railway Port jointly implement a 24-hour container pick-up and drop-off policy to improve the efficiency of the fruit train's operations so that fruit trains can be unloaded within 90 minutes after arrival and the return of empty containers within 90 minutes after unloading.

闻着臭、吃着香、口感绵密而独特的“果中之王”榴莲，深受国内水果市场和消费者的欢迎，但“缺点”是太“贵”了！不过，进入5月，随着热带水果成熟期到来，榴莲也逐渐大量上市，售价相比上市之初越发实惠。“吃货”们有口福了！

大降价！百元内拿下整个榴莲

四月初身价仍在每公斤百元的榴莲，“五一”小长假结束后迎来价格“腰斩”。多地网友表示，水果店、超市内，不少榴莲的价格已跌至20元/斤上下，仅需百元左右即有机会拿下整只榴莲。

而5月至8月，正是榴莲的成熟和销售旺季，大批榴莲正在上市，“质优价又廉”的趋势有望延续，价格或继续“一路向下”。

搭上“快车”！泰国榴莲出口额有望再创新高

今年的榴莲为啥这么便宜？以泰国为例，泰国拥有200多个榴莲品种，是全球出口新鲜榴莲最多的国家，也是我国允许进口水果品种最多的国家。目前，正值泰国榴莲采摘和销售旺季，绝大部分泰国产榴莲都销往中国。

今年，泰国榴莲出口商表示，自从搭上中老铁路的“快车”，榴莲运输到中国的时间大大缩短。以前通过海运需要大约7天时间、公路运输大约5天，自从有了中老铁路，榴莲从泰国运到中国昆明只需3天。泰国媒体报道，从泰国玛达普站（Map Ta Phut）开往中国广州的“榴莲班列”，已打破从泰国运输水果至中国所需时间的最快纪录，运输途中损耗的概率也显著降低。

根据泰国商业部统计，2022年中国占泰国榴莲出口总量的96%以上。预计在中老铁路的助力下，今年泰国榴莲的出口额有望再创新高。

果香四溢！中老铁路“水果班列”进口破万吨

不光是榴莲，雪白鲜甜的山竹、汁水充盈的龙眼、香甜浓郁的芒果……随着新一季东南亚水果成熟期的到来，来自泰国、老挝、越南、新加坡等东南亚多国的热带水果也正都进入旺季。今年4月起，榴莲、菠萝蜜、山竹、龙眼、柚子等热带水果开始大量上市，每天都有一列水果专列通过中老铁路入境后，发往昆明、成都、广州等各大城市。今年“五一”到来时，中老铁路运输进口热带水果已达1.1万吨，极大丰富了国内“果篮子”，一个“果香四溢”的夏季令人期待。

2022年12月，中老铁路开通运营满一年，随着云南磨憨铁路口岸进境水果指定监管场地的投入使用，中老铁路正式具备入境水果全铁路运输能力。

泰国的新鲜榴莲实现冷链专列全铁路运输，越来越多的东南亚热带水果搭乘“澜湄快线”中老铁路国际货物列车抵达昆明。

今年的进境热带水果运输旺季将持续至6月底，预计榴莲、山竹、龙眼、柚子等东南亚特产水果运量有望实现同比增长50%以上。

“快进快出”冷藏车组助热带水果“鲜上餐桌”

热带水果好吃，却娇嫩易坏。针对进口热带水果保鲜期短、对运输时限要求高等特点，国铁昆明局和云南磨憨铁路口岸共同实行24小时提箱，直装直卸，做到水果班列到达“90分钟内卸车，卸车后90分钟回空箱”，提高水果班列的作业效率。

作为我国通往东盟国家最便捷的陆路铁路大通道之一，广西凭祥口岸、东兴口岸等东盟水果进口需求连年增长，尤其榴莲、山竹、菠萝蜜等热带水果备受国内市场欢迎。

为提升进口水果运输效率，国铁南宁局还推出“8+1”无人值守冷藏车组：相对于传统跨境生鲜货物一般每4小时就要接电制冷的传统冷链运输，“8+1”车组由8个冷藏箱和1个发电箱组成，可为8个集装箱持续供电制冷300小时，不再受制冷4小时的限制。在保证水果品质的同时，进一步压缩通关时间，助力热带水果“鲜上餐桌”。（中文稿件来源：新华每日电讯 央视财经）