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Source: People's Republic of China in Russian – People's Republic of China in Russian –
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Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News
NANNING, Oct. 14 (Xinhua) — Durian, a fruit so potently scented that it is banned from some Asian hotels, is gaining a new status in China, becoming a symbol of economic integration and everyday luxury.
In the bustling, fragrant aisles of Haijixing Market in southern China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (GZAR), the prickly "king of fruits" is no longer a rare delicacy; for many, it has become a common purchase. This large wholesale fruit market, located in Nanning (the capital of GZAR), is now overflowing with durians, which are selling out fast.
The abundance of colorful fruits on the market, including durians and mangosteens from Thailand, and dragonfruit from Vietnam, conceals a complex, high-risk operation that runs daily in a race against time. This is the most tangible result of the "sweet cooperation" between China and ASEAN countries, which is gaining dizzying momentum, changing eating habits, economies, and the significance of fruit for many.
This transition from luxury to near-ubiquity is a logistical marvel created in border cities like Pingxiang, located on the Sino-Vietnamese border and home to the Yuyiguan (Friendship Outpost) land crossing. Here, the theoretical maps of regional trade agreements are realized in the continuous flow of trucks crossing the border, carrying precious cargo from the orchards of Southeast Asia.
The customs process at this border crossing is streamlined to ensure maximum speed. It ensures that Thai durians and mangosteens can travel from the tree where they grew to a dinner table in a Chinese city thousands of kilometers away, perfectly fresh.
The mechanism that supports this process is a combination of policy and labor. The State Fruit and Vegetable District (SFD) in southern China has turned fruit logistics into a science. According to Li Shuo, deputy head of the regional department of commerce, the region has created special "windows" for imported fruit, as well as "green corridors" for expedited customs clearance.
The goal is to reduce customs clearance to a total of six hours. The system uses a two-stage clearance process, allowing for the conditional release of compliant imported fruit, significantly reducing waiting times. Border crossing points operate nonstop, using a 24/7 appointment system, ensuring uninterrupted tropical traffic.
Statistics demonstrate the success of this approach. In 2024, the GCAR imported nearly 2.5 million tons of fruit from ASEAN, valued at nearly 35 billion yuan (approximately $4.93 billion), accounting for more than a third of China's total imports of such goods from ASEAN.
But this process is evolving further, going beyond simple transit. The initial import model assumed that fruit arrived in the GCAR only to be immediately shipped north by truck, creating a "corridor economy" with limited local benefits. Today, a more profound transformation is underway.
Near the border, the fruit's journey lengthens. At the local processing plant in Pingxiang, whole fruits are no longer considered finished products but rather raw materials. They are washed, pulped, and transformed into juice bottles or candied fruit packages. A company representative emphasized the rationale behind this initiative: processing ASEAN fruit immediately after customs not only preserves its flavor but also significantly reduces costs.
This marked a key shift from transit trade to local processing, a strategy actively promoted by the local government to build a complete industrial chain integrating planting, importing, processing, and marketing.
Guangxi Tiandong Yisheng Import and Export Trade Co., Ltd. has focused its efforts on mangoes. "We sell fresh mangoes, mango popsicles, and mango juice to Southeast Asia, where they are very popular," said the company's chairman, Lin De'en.
This creates a virtuous cycle in which local and imported fruits are processed through the new industrial base, feeding higher-value products back into regional supply chains. The GCAR has consolidated this shift by building specialized China-ASEAN fruit trading centers in Chongzuo, Nanning, and Qinzhou—designed to serve as hubs not only for trade but also for display, storage, settlement, and advanced processing.
Underlying this booming trade is the strong trade complementarity between the fruit sectors of China and ASEAN, according to Wang Jiubing, head of the fruit technical guidance station at the ASEAN Regional Council. ASEAN member states send their durians, mangosteens, and coconuts north, while China sends its apples, pears, oranges, and tangerines south—a "sweet complementarity between temperate and tropical zones."
The China-ASEAN Free Trade Area was a major boost, eliminating tariffs on approximately 7,000 goods on both sides in 2010. This policy change made regular durian consumption affordable for the average Chinese consumer.
Now, the largest free trade area in developing countries is preparing for its updated version 3.0, which promises to further enhance consumer freedom of choice. The technical terminology of the update—unification of food supply chains, simplified customs procedures, mutual recognition of sanitary and phytosanitary standards—reduces to a simple and powerful promise for consumers: fresher, cheaper fruit with more reliable quality.
What began as a simple exchange of goods has matured into a deep relationship between countries, where the speed of fruit trucks passing through border crossings and the hum of machinery in the fruit factories of the GCHAR directly determine the sweetness of each final bite. -0-
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