“The texture is so smooth that when people put it in their mouth they say it's like eating ice cream,” said Tan. “Once people taste Malaysian durian, they never forget it.” That's despite the distinctive aroma which elicits strong reactions, both positive and negative, from people.
“When we were at Asia Fruit Logistica this year, we had a lot of foreigners, especially from Europe and the United States, come to our booth because they smelled the fruit,” said Tan. “But when they tasted it, they all found it fantastic.” For now, Tan is still figuring out how to ship to Europe. Aside from the regulatory issues involved with that, he'll have to find a way to get the fruit to target markets within the one-week window during which the fruit is at its best.