With fruit supply from the southern region entering the market, the Internal Trade Department is establishing partnerships with housing projects and condos, in addition to wholesale and retail stores, local markets, traders and exporters, to directly buy fruit.
Wattanasak Sur-iam, director-general of the department, said the southern region's fruit harvest has begun, with about 50% of the output already entering the market.
In order to maintain fruit price stability for farmers, the department has formed new partnerships in the real estate sector, specifically in the housing and condo projects managed by six major real estate companies.
These companies comprise Iris Group, Assetwise Plc, Supalai Plc, Magnolia Quality Development Corporation, Sansiri Plc, and Smart Service and Management Co.
The initiative aims to distribute fruit to households in 54 housing projects and 25 condos, with a target of distributing 5,000 tonnes to 50,000 households.
Goranij Nonejuie, deputy director-general of the department, said fruit production in the eastern region ended.
Records indicate about half of the durian production in the southern region has been harvested, alongside 30-40% of the mangosteen and rambutan production, said Mr Goranij.
"Fruit prices this year are excellent. For instance, durian prices for grade A and B are priced at 120-125 baht per kilogramme, compared with 110 baht per kg last year," he said.
"Grade C durian is priced at 90-100 baht per kg, compared with 80 baht per kg last year. Demand for secondary-grade durian is extremely high as they are sought after for export to China. Overall, the price for durian this year is expected to be consistently good."
As for mangosteens, there is strong demand, with an average price range of 60-95 baht per kg, compared with 37 baht per kg last year, said Mr Goranij.
The mangosteen price even reached 120 baht per kg in one period, he said.
According to Mr Goranij, as the southern region's fruit harvest is scheduled to increase from July, the department has coordinated with various business operators, including exporters, processors, wholesalers, retailers and local markets with a total of 600 branches nationwide, to purchase crops from producers directly.
He said Thailand's overall fruit production this year, including durian, mangosteen, longan, rambutan, longkong, lychee, mango and pineapple, is estimated at 6.75 million tonnes, an increase of 3% year-on-year.
The northern region comprises 32% of total production, followed by the eastern region at 31%, the southern region at 13%, with other regions making up the remainder.