White durian was the top import among fruits to the Sultanate last year worth $1.39 million. The amount of white durian imported to Brunei stood at 606 metric tonnes followed by mango at 328.1mt ($1.15 million) and banana at 1875.7 mt ($1.10 million), figures obtained from the Agriculture Department showed.

The amount of import stood at 14,322.2 mt (76.6 per cent) and most of them were tropical fruits. All imported fruits could be planted in Brunei, which has more than ample land to grow them. Brunei has 2,258.12 ha of land on which the crops are planted by nearly 2,400 farmers.

However on the upside, the percentage of import has dropped from 15,601 mt in 2005 to 14, 322 mt last year.

Brunei's per capita fruits consumption is 55 kg per year with the demand for local fruits put at 70 per cent.

Brunei is expected to achieve 100 per cent self-sufficiency in tropical fruits in 2023 with an expected production of 24,649 mt from 6,162 hectares of land. The local need for fruits is expected to reach 34,700 mt in 2023 and tropical fruits alone at 24,200 mt.

Other fruits imported including from Sabah and Sarawak are milk melon $0.85 million (532.1 mt), watermelon $0.83 million (1413.7 mt), lime, $0.45 million (258.6 mt), pineapple $0.28 million (321.1 mt), young coconut $0.27 million (1084.6 mt), old coconut $0.24 million (402 mt), water guava $0.24 million (51 mt), yellow durian $0.23 million (115.2 mt) and papaya $0.21 million (357 mt).

Brunei has produced $1.41 million worth of sweet orange, $1.12 million durian, $1.08 million lime, $1.07 million banana, $0.30 million rambutan, $0.29 million jack fruit, $0.26 million Limau Kapas, $0.19 million guava, $0.17 million papaya, and 'Tarap' and water melon both at $0.16 million. Brunei achieved 43 per cent self-sufficiency in tropical fruits last year, two per cent more than targeted.

The Agriculture Department provides basic assistance to farmers including land lease at a low rate of $25 per hectare annually and provision of basic infrastructure and utilities, besides 50 per cent subsidised manure, pesticides, water pump and seedlings.

The department has highlighted several programmes to cultivate more fruits such as enhancing infrastructure such as roads and water supply, production technology and management, introducing farm accreditation programmes, crop protection programmes, enhancing crop quarantine, soil fertility programme, incentive programmes, local fruits planting campaign and developmental programmes for staff and farmers.