A consortium of Daikin Reefer, Hernan Cooperation and Yidu Group have completed the first successful live sea shipment of premium Malaysian durian to Dalian in 12 days.
On inspection in Dalian on 19 September the arrival quality of the two-tonne shipment matched air freight and was comparable to the fruit at origin, including after tasting.
The shipment was inspected by all partners together with the Trade Commissioner from the Malaysian Embassy who flew in from Beijing to attend.
Global popularity for durian is surging driven largely by China, which today accounts for over 90% of worldwide consumption. 2025 Chinese imports totalled 1.87 million metric tons with a value of $7.5 billion*.
This demand has made durian one of Southeast Asia’s highest-value fruit categories and in recent years, Malaysian plantations have expanded to cultivate more of its two most popular durian varieties and serve the growing Chinese market.
Such harvesting challenges have traditionally made air freight the only viable transport method capable of delivering ripe Malaysian durian to Chinese customers in an edible condition. However, air freight has limited capacity and is costly, creating concerns within the Malaysian durian industry around realising full export opportunities with such problematic logistics.
Two years ago, Daikin partnered with Hernan Cooperation on an intensive research programme into postharvest handling and shipment technology for tree-drop durian. The work combined handling protocol development with static trials designed to simulate the conditions of a full sea voyage.
The resulting landmark shipment to Dalian in September this year used Daikin's patented Active CA (controlled atmosphere) technology which reduces fruit respiration by more than 50% to approximately 20 mg CO₂/kg.hr. Slowing respiration extends fruit shelf life, putting ripening on hold during transit so fruit arrives ready to eat.
The Daikin Active CA system also maintains positive pressure inside the container, preventing ambient air ingression. This allows precise atmosphere control and avoids the condensation that would otherwise wet the fruit cartons. By contrast, alternative membrane and vacuum pump technologies that operate using negative pressure will draw in hot and humid ambient air and produce serious condensation that can flood the container.
During the shipment, Daikin’s customised control logic used multiple purity injection points to match the fruit's respiration profile and box tightness which then delivered optimal outturn upon arrival in Dalian.
“This successful shipment was a significant moment for Hernan. We now see a viable logistics solution that removes the dependency on air cargo – a solution that will reduce carbon emissions and create commercial opportunities for durian exports to extend further into the mass market in China” said Datuk Anna Teo – Group CEO of Hernan Cooperation.
“Malaysian agricultural exports will now benefit hugely from the potential to ship our renowned durian by sea rather than air freight, and we look forward to growing our trade with China further” said NIQMAN RAFAEE M. SAHAR, Minister Counsellor, Trade Commission, Embassy of Malaysia, Beijing.
“The Daikin Reefer team would like to thank all parties involved in this breakthrough shipment. Shifting Malaysian durian exports from air to sea reduces the carbon footprint of moving this fruit by around 70 times. We’re proud that Daikin Active CA technology has made this possible, unlocking a more efficient and cost-effective mode of transporting fresh tree-drop ripe durians” said Goh Ah Huat, General Manager, Global Marketing & Service at Daikin Reefer.
